H. van Raalte
Encyclopedia
Henri Benedictus Van Raalte (11 February 1881 - 4 November 1929), known as H. van Raalte, was an English-born Australian artist and printmaker
Printmaking
Printmaking is the process of making artworks by printing, normally on paper. Printmaking normally covers only the process of creating prints with an element of originality, rather than just being a photographic reproduction of a painting. Except in the case of monotyping, the process is capable...

.

Early life and training

Van Raalte was born in Lambeth
Lambeth
Lambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...

, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 in 1881 to Dutch parents, being educated at the City of London School, the Royal Academy
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...

 and later in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 and Holland. In 1901 he was elected an associate of the Royal Society of Painter-Etchers and Engravers, and in the same year had a picture hung at the Royal Academy exhibition. In 1902 there were full-page reproductions of an etching, and a dry-point by van Raalte in Modern ern Etching and Engraving, published by the Studio at London, highly competent and assured pieces of work, though he was then aged only 21.

Western Australia

In 1910 he went to Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

 and founded a school of art at Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....

. He did many etching
Etching
Etching is the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio in the metal...

s and aquatint
Aquatint
Aquatint is an intaglio printmaking technique, a variant of etching.Intaglio printmaking makes marks on the matrix that are capable of holding ink. The inked plate is passed through a printing press together with a sheet of paper, resulting in a transfer of the ink to the paper...

s, often taking gum trees for his subjects, but it was some time before his work became known in the eastern states. He had an exhibition of his work at Perth in 1919 which was followed by another at Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...

. In 1921 he was appointed curator of the art department at Adelaide, and in 1922 his title was changed to curator of the art gallery. He resigned in January 1926 owing to differences of outlook between him and the board of governors. He established a studio at Second Valley, South Australia
Second Valley, South Australia
Second Valley is a coastal town on the Fleurieu Peninsula in South Australia. At the 2006 census, Second Valley had a population of 171.The name is derived from being the next valley north of Rapid Bay, the initial camp on South Australian mainland of Colonel William Light....

, and lived there for the last three years of his life.

Death

Except for occasional fits of depression van Raalte was apparently in good health, and it was intended that he should hold an exhibition of his work at Adelaide about the end of 1929. On 4 November of that year he was found in the grounds of his house shot through the head, and he died on the same day, leaving a widow and three sons.

External links

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