About the Series by Christopher McLeod
I have always had an interest in the Explorers of Australia, which began during my childhood in the Northern Territory, continued when my father set out from the Weather Station at Giles in the Western Australian Desert to find Lasseter's Reef in the fifties and culminated in the early eighties with my LASSETER SERIES.
This Series of paintings has a wider range, covering the Explorers on Land and sea and includes my own family who arrived in 1852, crossed the Blue Mountains and settled in Western NSW in 1862 at the same time that John McDouall Stuart was battling his way across the interior of the continent. I have included the role of Aborigines in this story where possible even though details of their participation are sketchy.
The bravery and resilience of the men in their tiny ships and the sheer guts of the Explorers on land left me stunned with admiration for their achievements. These paintings are a record of their respective adventures, sadness, hardship, death, stupidityand Glory for a few. I wish to thank the many Authors and Historians that inspired my efforts with their books and in particular Tim Flannery for his unique contribution to Australian History.
It has been a great joy to research and paint the men and women who opened up our country but in the end it is the Explorers own stories that inspired the brush and after all, we all like a good yarn.
ENJOY.
Christopher McLeod 2008
