A lecture on Australian colonial furniture by John McPhee will be held at the David Roche Foundation in Adelaide on Thursday, 21 February, 6pm to 7.15pm.

The lecture will consider the history of colonial furniture scholarship and examine some of the problems that still puzzle us.

How many sideboards did Governor Macquarie own? Why can we not identify more colonial cabinetmakers? Where did exotic timbers for stringing or gilded slips come from? Can we be certain it is cedar? Could that chair be Indian?

Our knowledge of colonial cabinetmaking is small. There are more questions than answers, and it sometimes seems that much will remain unknown. Being aware of what we do not know puts us in a stronger position to look at colonial furniture with clear eyes.

John McPhee is an art historian and was the founding Curator of Australian decorative arts and then Senior Curator at the NGA, and Deputy Director at the NGV. He is the author of books on colonial art and responsible for many exhibitions of Australian decorative art.

For more information, visit events page of the David Roche Foundation website