A Sunburnt Country

Dorothea Mackellar’s classic poem with paintings by Bill Beavan.

Almost three-quarters of a century lie between the words of the colonial girl, Dorothea Mackellar, and the paintings of present-day Bill Beavan, yet both are fired by the same love of a harsh and beautiful land.

The young Dorothea, gently nurtured in a wealthy Sydney home, cherished a dreamily romantic vision of Australia. Artist Bill Beavan, once described as “a bushman who lives in the city”, has attributes of skill and spirit which are ideally suited to the realistic interpretation of Dorothea’s dreams. He travels extensively in the outback in search of material for his strongly vibrant canvases and he has always been fascinated by the changing moods and violent physical contrasts of the unique Australian landscape.