Percy Trezise: The Yadgabulla Sisters at Daybreak: Cape Tribulation & other works

Percy Trezise, The Yadgabulla Sisters at Day-Break, Cape Tribulation

The Artist

Percy Trezise is best remembered as a painter, writer, anthropologist and illustrator that worked in Northern Queensland. He collaborated closely with indigenous artist, Dick Roughsey. According to Harper Collins (who published much of his material), Percy Trezise AM (1923 - 2005) was a painter and writer as well as an historian and documenter of Aboriginal rock art. Trezise served in the RAAF during WW2, and from 1956 he worked in northern Australia as an airline pilot. From the air he would gauge areas likely to contain Aboriginal rock art that he would later explore. Trezise collaborated on a series of children’s books with Aboriginal artist Dick Roughsey, and as well as being a member of the Order of Australia, in 2004 he received an Honorary Doctorate from James Cook University.

The Work of Art

This is a  beautifully composed image of a Northern Queensland scene where the rocks, known as Yadgabulla Sisters are viewed from the rainforest. The dawn coming across the Pacific provides an interesting contrast between  the light ocean of the Pacific and the foreground rainforest. Percy was known for studying and  illustrating  scenes around Cape York and  Cape Tribulation. According to Alan and Susan McCollough, his style may seem niave. The work  is a delightful and realistic landscape.

The painting was created using oils on board and was created in 1972. The work should also be viewed  alongside those of Dick Roughsey in the University's Art Collection since both worked very closely together and naturally reflected on each other's ideas.