Ernest William Christmas (Australian, 1863-1918) "Coolibah Tree by a Billabong at Sunset", 1898
Ernest William Christmas (Australian, 1863-1918) "Coolibah Tree by a Billabong at Sunset", 1898
Ernest William Christmas (Australian, 1863-1918)
Signed: E.W. Christmas, ‘98, (lower, right)
" Coolibah Tree by a Billabong at Sunset ", 1898
Oil on canvas laid on masonite
36 1/16" x 24 1/8"
Appears to be in very good original condition with fresh, bright coloring with interesting brushwork. The original frame had been replaced long ago and this work is being sold unframed.
This certainly could have been inspired by the poem/song by Andrew Barton " Banjo " Paterson, " Waltzing Matilda ” written in 1895, just a few years before the execution of this work.
" Once a Jolly Swagman Camped by a Billabong, Under the Shade of a Coolibah Tree "
Ernest W. Christmas was born near Adelaide, South Australia in 1863 and received his early art lessons in Adelaide and Sydney.
He was greatly influenced by the realistic works of Henry James Johnstone, (English/Australian, 1835-1907), as is evident by the Johnstone painting, " A Billabong in the Goulburn Valley, Victoria Australia ", oil on canvas, 1878, sold at Sotheby's, Sydney on March 20, 2019, for $ 74,900.
Christmas moved to Kalgoorlie in 1894, just after the discovery of gold in that area, and lived there until 1900. After that he traveled widely, and died in Honolulu, Hawaii in 1918.
