B. 1909 – 1999

Born in Melbourne and raised in Sydney, Elaine Haxton was a painter, illustrator, printmaker and theatre designer. Leaving school at fourteen, she studied at the East Technical School before travelling to London to work with an advertising agency and further her studies at the Grosvenor School of Art.

At the outbreak of World War Two, Haxton returned to Australia. In 1942, she was commissioned to paint scenes from the Ballet Russes production Le Coq D’Or for a restaurant of the same name, winning the Sulman Prize the following year for these murals which unfortunately would be painted over in the 1950s.

Well versed in European and Asian printmaking techniques, Haxton was a six-time Sulman Prize finalist. She is represented across public collections including at the National Gallery of Victoria and internationally at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. 

To read a more in-depth biography of the artist, click here.