Tommy McRae Australia (Aboriginal), 1830-1901
Past Sales
Sales by Medium
Where to buy or sell art works by Tommy McRae
Auction Houses
About Tommy McRae
Tommy McRae, with William Barrak is one of the instantly recognisable nineteeth century Australian indigenous artists. He was born in the Upper Murray region and as a youth worked on Brocklesby Station of later Tom Roberts fame. Around the mid 1860s, after sometime down at Echuca where he made drawings under the name of Barnes, McRae settled near Corowa, at Wahgunyah on the Victorian side of the Murray. He died at the nearby Lake Moodemere Aboriginal Settlement in 1901. It was vigneron Roderick Kilborn who apparently supplied McRae with materials and encouraged him to make sketch books for sale. All his drawings were in ink. Some were on loose sheets. Tommy McRae's style is unique and revolves 'around the delicate use of the silhouette, suggestion of space and brevity, but faithfulness in the observation of local flora and fauna'. Ref: A. Sayers, Aboriginal Artists of the 19th Century, OUP, Melbourne, 1994. Various themes engaged the artist but the most common were the hunt and the battle scene.
We have records of art auction sales by Tommy McRae from 1988 and in total 39 works by the artist have been offered for sale, of which 28 (72%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $228,000 for Sketchbook sold by Deutscher and Hackett in March 2013. This year one work has been offered for sale. Works by Tommy McRae are held by the National Gallery of Victoria, National Gallery of Australia and a further three major public national galleries (see list below).
Tommy McRae 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 96
- Kerr, Joan. Dictionary of Australian Artists, Painters, Sketchers, Photographers and Engravers to 1870. Oxford University Press, Australia, 1993. Page 506
- Tommy McRae is classified as one of the top Australian Indigenous artists by leading Aboriginal fine art gallery, Cooee Gallery, Sydney.
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…
No, ineligible. The artist has been deceased for more than 70 years.
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