List of Australian art critics (news periodicals) explained

……This is a sortable list of Australian art critics who wrote for newspapers in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, a period in which such periodicals carried the majority of current, contemporaneous art criticism, before most such papers ceased art reviews in the 21st century.

Hamilton^[1] writes to distinguish this genre:

...criticism that appears in newspapers is written for a general audience, and the real substance of newspaper art criticism can best be summed up as providing an antidote for the ‘vernacular glance’. This term, coined by art historian Brian O’Doherty in 1974,^[2] refers to the modern phenomenon of viewing an exhibition casually, with eyes darting indiscriminately from object to object in an ineffectual effort to take in the entire exhibition at once. The work of the critic is effectively to map an exhibition for an audience, and thereby transform the vernacular glance into an informed glance that is capable of discerning either meaning or emptiness in the work on show.

Barker and Green, noting the number of art critics writing for newspapers in the 1970s, consider that 'this writing was essentially ephemeral, based on the assessment of the wide spectrum of […] exclusively local, art exhibitions. It was essentially a form of reportage.^[3]

In 2012 Osborne noticed a general devaluing and disparagement of the newspaper critic and warned that:

… the progressively weakened position of newspaper art criticism and the threat of it disappearing altogether from mass market newspapers […] could have far-reaching repercussions […] a nodal rupture in the network of relationships between the art world and the wider public. The complex ecology of the art world needs this link with the wider public. It needs a healthy balance between critical writing in art journals and newspapers.^[4]

Nineteenth- and twentieth-century newspaper and magazine critics

Surname	First name	Life	Newspaper or Magazine	Dates
Adams	Bruce	1950–	The Australian	1972–74
Adams	Bruce	1950–	Sunday Telegraph	1972–74
Allen	Christopher	1953–	Australian Financial Review	2005–2008
Allen	Mary Cecil	1893–1962	The Sun News-Pictorial	1925
Allen	Christopher	1953–	The Australian	2008>
Allen	Christopher	1953–	The Sydney Morning Herald	1987–1991
Ashton	(Julian) Howard	1877–1964	The Argus	1910–11
Ashton	(Julian) Howard	1877–1964	Sydney Sun	c.1912–c.1936
Auty	Giles	1934–2020	The Australian	1995–2001
Baily	Harold John	1927–	Sunday Mail (S.A.)	1963–64
Bell	George	1878–1966	The Sun News-Pictorial	1923-50
Bellew	Peter Richard	1912–1986	The Sydney Morning Herald	1939–42
Benson	George Courtney		The West Australian	1931>?
Borlase	Nancy	1914–	The Sydney Morning Herald	1973–81
Borlase	Nancy	1914–	The Bulletin	1972–73
Britton	Stephanie		The News (S.A.)	1971-77
Britton	Stephanie		Sunday Mail (S.A.)	1980
Bromfield	David	1947– 2024	The West Australian	late 80s-1990s
Brook	Donald	1927–2018	Canberra Times	c.1964-65
Brook	Donald	1927–2018	The Sydney Morning Herald	1968-1973?
Burdett	Basil	1897–1942	Brisbane Daily Mail	1919-21
Burdett	Basil	1897–1942	Herald (Melbourne)	1936
Burke	Carolyn	1940–1989	Various international, incl. The New York Times	1990>
Bush	Charles William	1919–1989	The Australian	1966
Campbell	Jean	1901–1984	The Advertiser	1952–1974
Campbell	Jean	1901–1984	The Courier-Mail	1952–1974?
Carrington	Francis Thomas Dean (Tom)	1843–1918	The Argus
Carrington	Francis Thomas Dean (Tom)	1843–1918	The Australasian	1889
Catalano	Gary	1947–2002	The Age	1985–1990
Cazneaux	Harold Pierce	1878–1953	Sydney Mail	??
Cazneaux	Harold Pierce	1878–1953	The Lone Hand	??
Chapman	Dora Cecil	1911–1995	The Advertiser	1958–69
Colquhoun	Alexander	1862-1941	Herald (Melbourne)	1914-1922
Colquhoun	Alexander	1862-1941	The Age	1926-1941
Cook	Arthur Vollens	1909–1967	The Age	1946–57
Cook	William Edward James	1904–1960	Daily Telegraph	1952-1959
Cooper	Charles Gordon (Professor)	?	The Courier-Mail	c.1940s
Cramer	Sue		The Age
Cross	Elizabeth	1943–	The Sydney Morning Herald	??
Cross	Elizabeth	1943–	The Age	??
de Groen	Geoffrey	1938–	Canberra Times	1973–77
de Groen	Geoffrey	1938–	National Times	1973–77
Dickinson	Sidney	1851–1919	Australasian Critic	1889-91
Dolan	David	1949–2011	The Advertiser	1977–80
Dolan	David	1949–2011	Sunday Mail (S.A.)	1974–77
Dutton	Geoffrey	1922–1998	The News (S.A.)	1958–62
Eagle	Mary	1944	The Age	1977–1980
Faerber	Ruth	1922	Australian Jewish Times	1970s
Faust	Beatrice Eileen	1939–2019	The Age	1970s
Faust	Beatrice Eileen	1939–2019	National Times	1970s
Fitzgerald	Paul	1922-2017	The Argus	c.1940
Francis	Ivor Pengelly	1906–1993	The News (S.A.)	1944–1955
Francis	Ivor Pengelly	1906–1993	Sunday Mail (S.A.)	1964-74
Francis	Ivor Pengelly	1906–1993	The Advertiser	1974–76
Freiberg^[5]	Freda	1933–2024	The Age	1990s
Frost	Andrew		Guardian Australia	Current
Genocchio	Benjamin	1969–	The Australian	1998-2002
George	Robert Esmond	1888–1959	Sunday Mail (S.A.)	1946–c.1966
Gleeson	James Timothy	1915–2008	Sun-Herald	1962-74
Gleeson	James Timothy	1915–2008	Sydney Sun	1949-74
Gough	Craig Alan	1938–	Sunday Times (WA)	1972–73
Grishin	Sasha	1950–	Canberra Times	1977–2023
Haefliger	Paul	1914-1982	The Sydney Morning Herald	1941–1957
Hamilton	Charles (wrote as 'C.G.')	1874–1967	West Australian	c.1907–1920s
Hannon	William	1932–2020	The Bulletin	1960–65
Hansen	David	1958–2024	The Age	1990s
Harpur	Royston	1938–2023	Sydney Observer	1960
Harpur	Royston	1938–2023	The Australian	1971
Harrison	Henry Bromilow	1878–1948	The Argus	1912–1943
Harrison	Henry Bromilow	1878–1948	The Australian	??
Heathcote	Christopher		The Age	1990s
Heffernan	Edward Bonaventura	1912	Geelong Advertiser	1966–74
Henshaw	John George	1929–2006	The Australian	1969–70
Herbert	Harold Brocklebank	1891–1945	The Sun News-Pictorial	c1936>
Herbert	Harold Brocklebank	1891–1945	The Argus	c1936>
Herbert	Harold Brocklebank	1891–1945	The Australasian	1927-1934…
Herbert	Harold Brocklebank	1891–1945	The Australasian	c.1932
Holloway	Memory	1946–	The Melbourne Times	1977–78
Holloway	Memory	1946–	The Australian^[6]	1978-81
Holloway	Memory	1946–	The Age^[7]	1982–86
Hughes^[8]	Robert	1938–2012	The Age	1963–c.1970
Hughes	Robert	1938–2012	Sydney Observer	1958–59
Hughes	Robert	1938–2012	Nation Review	1959–1963
Hughes	Robert	1938–2012	Sunday Mirror	1963
Irving	Pamela	1960–	Geelong Advertiser	c.1980s
Hutak	Michael		The Bulletin	1999–2007
Hutak	Michael		The Sydney Morning Herald	>1997
Hutchings	Patrick	1929–	The Bulletin	1961…
Klepac	Lou	1936–	The News (S.A.)	1967–70
Langer	Gertrude	1908–1984	The Courier-Mail	1953–1984
Lansell	G. Ross	?	Nation Review	1966-67
Lansell	G. Ross	?	Daily Telegraph	1967–78
Lawlor	Adrian	1889–1969	The Bulletin	1921–23
Leason	Percy	1889–1959	Table Talk	1929-1933…
Leckie	Malcolm (Mal) John Sewart	1952	Goldcoast City Bulletin	1978
Lindsay	Raymond	1903-1960	Daily Telegraph	1940>
Lindsay	Lionel Arthur	1874–1961	The Bulletin	1890s–1900s
Lindsay	Lionel Arthur	1874–1961	The Lone Hand	1907-21
Lindsay	Lionel Arthur	1874–1961	Herald (Melbourne)	1935
Lindsay	Norman	1879–1969	The Lone Hand	Occasional c.1907–21
Loureiro^[9]	Marie Therese	? – 1907	The Age	late 1800s
Loxton	John Samuel	1903–1971	The Argus	1947–48
Lynn	Elwyn	1917–1997	Nation Review	1969
Lynn	Elwyn	1917–1997	Sunday Mirror	1963
Lynn	Elwyn	1917–1997	The Australian
Lynn	Elwyn	1917–1997	The Bulletin	1966-1973
MacDonald	James Stuart (Jimmy)	1878–1952	Herald (Melbourne)	1923…
MacDonald	James Stuart (Jimmy)	1878–1952	The Age	1943-47
Macgeorge	Norman	1872–1952	Herald (Melbourne)	Late 1930s
Mahood	Marguerite Henriette	1901–1989	Radio and Listener In	Mid-1920s
Makin^[10]	Jeffrey	1943	The Sun News-Pictorial	1972–87 1997–
Maloon	Terence	1950–	The Sydney Morning Herald	1982-1987
Mather	John Baxter	1853–1940	The Advertiser	1889-1904
McCaughey^[11]	Patrick	1942–	The Age	1966–69 1971–74
McCulloch	Alan McLeod	1907–1992	The Argus	1944-1947
McCulloch	Alan McLeod	1907–1992	Herald (Melbourne)	1951-1981
McCulloch	Susan	1949-	The Age	1980s
McCulloch	Susan	1949-	The Sun News-Pictorial	1980s
McCulloch	Susan	1949-	The Australian	1994-2004
McCulloch	Susan	1949-	The Bulletin	1980s
McDonald	John	1961	The Sydney Morning Herald	1987–2017 ?
McGrath	Sandra	??	The Australian	1972
McGrath	Sandra	??	The Bulletin	occasional
McInnes	Colin	1914-1976	London Observer	1948–50
McIntyre	Arthur	1945–2003	The Australian	1977–78
McIntyre	Arthur	1945–2003	The Age	1980s
McIntyre	Alan Lester	1913	Examiner	1960s?
McIntyre	Alan Lester	1913-2002	The Bulletin	pre-WW2
McIntyre	Alan Lester	1913-2002	Smiths Weekly	pre-WW2
McKinnon	Thomas Firmin	1878–1953	The Courier-Mail	1940s-1950s
McNally	Matthew James	1874–1943	Daily Telegraph	occasional
McNally	Matthew James	1874–1943	The News (South Australia)	occasional
McNally	Matthew James	1874–1943	The Mail (South Australia)	occasional
North	Ian		The News (South Australia)	1971-72 1974
Mendelssohn	Joanna	1949–	The Bulletin	1988>
Merrifield	Hilary (nee Hunter)		West Australian	1960s
Millar	Ronald Grenville	1927	The Australian	1965–70
Millar	Ronald Grenville	1927	Herald (Melbourne)	1965 1981–93
Moore	William George	1868–1937	The Courier-Mail	c.1919>
Moore	William George	1868–1937	Daily Telegraph	c.1919>
Moore	William George	1868–1937	Herald (Melbourne)	1904>
Nelson	Robert	1957–	The Age	1984 - 1990s
Neville	Greg	1951–	The Age	1990–1993
Nibbi	Gino	1896–1969	Herald (Melbourne)	occasional
Peir	Clifton Thomas Almont	1905–1985	The Sunday Mirror	1961–62
Perry	Tony	?	The Age	1978–1981
Philpot	Ernest Sidney	1906	Sunday Times (WA)	1961–65
Pidgeon	William Edwin 'WEP'	1909–1981	Daily Telegraph	1974–1979
Preston	Margaret Rose	1875–1963	Art in Australia	1924–1940
Riddell	Elizabeth	1910–1998	The Australian	1960s
Rooney	Robert	1937–2017	The Age	1980-July 1982
Rooney	Robert	1937–2017	The Australian	1982–99
Ross (Sanders)	Christine Alexandra	1944	Newcastle Morning Herald	1971–
Seidel	Brian	1928–2019	The News (S.A.)	1963–1966
Shannon	David Michael	1927–1993	The Australian	1973–75
Sheridan	Noel		Sunday Mail (S.A.)	1977–80
Shore	Arnold Joseph Victor	1897–1963	The Argus	1949–1957
Shore	Arnold Joseph Victor	1897–1963	The Age	1957–1963
Skipper	Mervyn	1886–1959	The Bulletin	1930-31…1956–59
Skipper	Mervyn	1886–1959	The Lone Hand
Smart	Jeffrey (Frank Jeffrey Edson)	1921–	Daily Telegraph	1952–54
Smee	Sebastian	1972–	The Australian	c.2004–2008
Smith^[12]	Bernard	1916–2011	The Age	1963–1966
Smith	Ernest Walter	1928	Sunday Mail (S.A.)	1963
Smith	James	1820-1910	The Age	1854
Smith	James	1820-1910	The Argus	1860s
Stevens	William Bertram (Bert)	1872–1922	The Bulletin	1909–10
Stevens	William Bertram (Bert)	1872–1922	The Lone Hand	1912-18
Streeton	Arthur	1867–1943	The Argus	1867–1943
Sweetapple^[13]	Agnes Theodora (Dora)	1899–1987	The Sydney Morning Herald	1950s–?
Thomas	Daniel Rhys	1931	Sunday Telegraph	1962–66 1968–69
Thomas	Daniel Rhys	1931	The Sydney Morning Herald	1970–75
Thomas	Daniel Rhys	1931	The Bulletin	1976–77
Thomas	Laurence Nicholas Barrett (Laurie)	1915–1974	Herald (Melbourne)	1949-50
Thomas	Laurence Nicholas Barrett (Laurie)	1915–1974	The Australian	1968-73
Thompson	Gerald Marr	1856–1938	Daily Telegraph	C.1883-6
Thornton	Wallace Keogh	1915–1991	The Sydney Morning Herald	1957–67
Tildesley	Evelyn Mary	1882-1976	Australian Women's Weekly	1923-35
Timms	Peter	1948	The Age	1990s
Timms	Peter	1948	The Australian	1990s
Turnbull	Stanley Clive Perry	1906–1975	Herald (Melbourne)	1943-48
Vanzetti	Francesco Cesare Luigi Stefano	1878–1967	West Australian	c.1929...c.1952?
Veal	Hayward Wilfred	1913–1968	Daily News (Sydney)	1937–c.1951?
Walker	Wendy	1946–	The Australian	2006-2016
Walker	Wendy	1946–	The Advertiser	1999-2006
Ward	Peter		The Australian	1976–2002
Warren	Alan	1919–1991	The Sun News-Pictorial	1951–72
Webb	Elizabeth		The Courier-Mail	1940s–1950s
Wieneke	James	1906–1981	Brisbane Telegraph	1949–50
Wilkie	Leslie Andrew	1879–1935	The Age	briefly
Willis	Anne-Marie		Nation Review	c.1977
Wood	Rex Thomas Percy Reginald	1908–1970	?	?
Young	Elizabeth		The Advertiser	1952–74
Young	William Blamire	1862–1935	Herald (Melbourne)	1929–34

Bibliography

• • • • Book: Haese, Richard . Rebels and precursors : the revolutionary years of Australian art . 1988 . Penguin . 28 November 2024.
• Book: James, Rodney Bevan . Letters to a critic : Alan McCulloch's world of art . The Miegunyah Press . 978-0-522-87987-2. 2023.
• Book: Kerr, Joan . The dictionary of Australian artists : painters, sketchers, photographers and engravers to 1870 . 1992 . Oxford University Press . 978-0-19-553290-6.
• Book: Marsh, Anne . Doing Feminism : Women's Art and Feminist Criticism in Australia . 2021 . The Miegunyah Press, an imprint of Melbourne University Publishing Limited . 978-0-522-87759-5 . Melbourne.
• Book: McCulloch . Alan. The New McCulloch's Encyclopedia of Australian Art . McCulloch . Susan . McCulloch Childs . Emily . AUS Art Editions; Miegunyah Press. 2006 . 0-522-85317-X . 4th . Fitzroy . ix . 80568976.

External links

• Michael Snape – ‘Art Criticism: The Silenced Witness’

Notes and References

1. Hamilton . Judy . 2013 . Influencing the Modern in Brisbane: Gertrude Langer and the Role of Newspaper Art Criticism . Queensland Review . 20 . 206 . 10.1017/qre.2013.21 . Cambridge Journals.
2. O’Doherty . Brian . 1973 . Rauschenberg and the vernacular glance . Art in America . 61 . 5 . 82–87.
3. Green . Charles . Barker . Heather . June 2011 . No place like home: Australian art history and contemporary art at the start of the 1970s . Journal of Art Historiography . 3 . ResearchGate.
4. Osborne . Margot . June 2012 . Who would be an art critic? . Art Monthly Australia . 250 . 76–78.
5. News: Freiberg . Freda . 7 May 1997 . Koons takes the cake for art ads . The Age . C7.
6. News: Holloway . Memory . 15 June 1978 . With a little bit of angst . The Australian.
7. News: Holloway . Memory . 28 July 1982 . Art : Olsen pays tribute to his companions . The Age . 14.
8. Hughes . Robert . 26 January 1963 . Dog eats dog . Nation Review . 19.
9. Web site: Loureiro, Marie Therese (?–1907) . 29 November 2024 . Obituaries Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
10. Book: Makin, Jeffrey . Critical moments : essays and reviews on art in Australia . Macmillan . 2011 . 978-1-921394-19-5 . Melbourne . 2011.
11. McCaughey . Patrick . September–October 1967 . The art critic . Quadrant . 74–79.
12. Book: Smith, Bernard . The critic as advocate: selected essays 1948-88 . Oxford University Press . 1988 . 978-0-19-553029-2 . Melbourne . 1989.
13. Web site: Cunneen . Chris . Agnes Theodora (Dora) (1899–1987) . 29 November 2024 . People Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.