This publication by the Australian Ex Libris Society includes a series of 17 bookplate designs by Australian artists working in a range of printmaking mediums including etching, linocut and woodcut. Contributing artists to this volume include well known names such as Norman Lindsay, Eric Thake and Adrian Feint. Each bookplate design is fixed to the inside pages of the 9th Annual Report for 1932-33 printed as a limited run of 250 copies by Beacon Press in Sydney.

The prints are a mix of original imprints and photomechanical reproductions. Aside from the variety of mediums, these works display a wide range of styles from pastoral scenery, to images evocative of Renaissance book plates, to those inspired by the modern Art Deco designs that were gaining popularity at the time.

Particularly unique to this set is the irreverent caricature created by Norman Lindsay for Noela Slessor. Ms. Slessor's own pet Pekingese dog is depicted as a book censor who has just finished protecting the 'delicate sensibilities' of a female acquaintance.

This collection is not only notable for the artists featured - many of the individuals whose names are featured in the plates were prominent cultural figures in their own right. A book plate commissioned for the famed Antarctic explorer Sir Douglas Mawson features a scene with dogs pulling a sled in an icy landscape.

Suitable for bibliophiles and those interested in the history of bookmaking in Australia, or anyone with an interest in Australian printmaking of the interwar period.

The Australian EX LIBRIS SOCIETY
'Annual Report of 16 Bookplates' 1932
mixed media on paper
Image Size: 11 x 8 cm
Dimensions: 23 x 15 cm
Signed: Signed in plate
Comes with Letter of Provenance
 
These bookplates were included in the Ninth Annual Report for 1932, published by the Society in 1933. Limited print run of 250; Beacon Press Sydney in 1933. Prints are adhered throughout the Ex Libris Society's annual report, affixed via top edge. Sizes vary.

ARTISTS REPRESENTED: G. D. Perrottet; Norman Lindsay; Ella Dwyer; N.T. Hope; Gayfield Shaw; Adrian Feint; Arnold Hirst; R.A. Clive; Ralph Warner; Eirene Mort; John C. Goodchild; L. Roy Davies; E. E. Brown; John B. Godson; Mick Paul; Olive Crane; and Eric Thake.

Condition: Very Good: Describes a work of art's image as Excellent, but may show some small signs of surrounding wear to paper or frame. There are no tears to paper margin or disruption to the paint surface.

(c) The Artist or Assignee