Joy St. Clair Hester Australia, 1920-60
Past Sales
Sales by Medium
Where to buy or sell art works by Joy Hester
Auction Houses
About Joy Hester
Born in Elsternwick, Melbourne in 1920, Hester had little art training. She was married to Albert Tucker and later to Gray Smith. She was known as a painter and graphic artist working in brush and ink, becmong known for studies of faces expressing extreme emotional states. After her death in 1960 a commemorative exhibition was held at George's Gallery in Melbourne in 1963, another was held at the National Gallery of Victoria in 1981, followed by a Sydney exhibition in 1993. A rekindling of interest occurred with the publication of a biographical monograph in 1983.
The total number of works by Joy Hester offered for sale by auction since 1972 is 293, of which 175 (60%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $316,727 for Girl with Cocky C.1957 sold by Leonard Joel in June 2018. No works have been offered for sale this year, and the last sale we have recorded for the artist was in 2023. Works by Joy Hester are held by the National Gallery of Australia, Heide Museum of Modern Art and a further seven major public national galleries (see list below).
Joy Hester is listed in the following standard biographical references:
- McCulloch, Alan McCulloch, Susan McCulloch, Emily McCulloch-Childs. The New McCulloch's Encyclopedia of Australian Art. 4th Edition, Aus Art Melbourne & The Miegunyah Press, 2006. Page 515
- Campbell, Jean. Australian Watercolour Painters: 1780 to the Present Day. Craftsman House, Sydney, 1989. Page 322
- Dictionary of Australian Artists Online, an online resource for biographical data about Australian artists, designers, craftspeople and curators.
- Australian Prints + Printmaking, a database listing printmaking artists from Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region based on the print collection of the National Gallery of Australia.
Artists' Resale Royalty
Could the second and subsequent works by this artist sold after June 9, 2010 for over $1,000 be liable for the Artists' Resale Royalty? More info…
Yes, eligible, subject to the artist satisfying the residency test. The artist is alive or has been deceased for less than 70 years. Contact the Copyright Agency for information on the residency test.
The Australian Art Sales Digest is a database of over 610,000 works by more than 12,000 artists who are listed as having either lived or worked in Australia or New Zealand, and an additional 36,000 foreign and other artists, offered for sale by auction in Australia and New Zealand from the early 1970s to the present day.
Access to the database is available on either a monthly or annual subscription. During the subscription period you have unlimited access to the site. If you would like to subscribe, please proceed to our Subscription Form.