From 1941, modernist Eric Thake began sending his friends hand-designed Christmas cards. By 1975, he moved from linocuts to offset lithographs, his eyesight beginning to fail. Sharply observed nonetheless, these cards still speak to Thake’s innerworld and perspective on life, with this particular work sent to his friend, revered writer and curator Ursula Hoff.

‘Ladies… ABOUT TURN!’ is hand-signed and inscribed to Hoff. It is a portrait of the town Meekatharra, which Thake writes elsewhere was the heart of the camel trade in Australia until the invention of the motorcar. “When I was there in 1970, the camels were all gone, the thirst only remained,” wrote Thake.

Represented across numerous public collections, including at the Art Gallery of South Australia, ‘Ladies… ABOUT TURN’ is an accessible entry into Thake’s practice. It speaks to his remarkable wit, Australian modernism and the friendship between an artist and scholar. With strikingly excellent provenance, it is a prize for collectors of modernist art.

Eric THAKE (1904 - 1982)
'Ladies… ABOUT TURN!' 1979
offset lithograph on paper
Image Size: 29 x 22 cm
Dimensions: 29 x 22 cm image and overall sheet size, scored to fold
Signed: Signed and dated lower left Eric Thake 1979; inscribed with dedication to Dr Hoff on reverse. Inscribed reverse sheet, ink To Ursula / with Best Wishes / for 1980 / Oh for a lodge / in some vast wilderness - / William Cowper 1731 - 1800
Comes with Letter of Provenance

Impressions of this work are at the:
National Gallery of Victoria, accession number: 2005.95
Art Gallery of South Australia, accession number: 20172G/38

Condition: Excellent

© The Artist or Assignee