Portrait of Joseph Reed – Architect 1875

Summary

Framed 1/2 length portrait (seated) of Joseph Reed - architect. Joseph Reed designed the Melbourne Town Hall. As the leading Melbourne architect of the late 19th century he was responsible for many of the major public buildings that are identified with the city. Six months after arriving in Melbourne he won the competition to design the Melbourne Public Library. Together with Frederick Barnes, the duo were responsible for the designing of Trades Hall, the Exhibition Buildings, Ormond College, the Royal Society building and numerous churches throughout the city. Reed established the city’s first major private architectural office. One employee remembered him as ‘…an Australian terrier; liable to snap up at you with sudden violence, then forget all he had said and be helpful and kind’. Another recalled him as ‘practical and decisive, an aggressive little fellow but very kindly’. James Clarke Waite (1832-1920) first exhibited in Australia at the Sydney International Exhibition, 1879-80. He arrived in Melbourne in 1886 and became a leading portrait painter. His commissions include the portrait of Alderman William Bayles held in the City of Melbourne collection, and the portrait of Alfred Felton in the National Gallery of Victoria collection. This painting was exhibited in the “Australian Artists Association Summer Exhibition” of 1887.