Guide to the Papers of Robin Wallace-Crabbe

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MS 8053

National Library of Australia View Catalogue Record

Collection Summary

Creator
Robin Wallace-Crabbe
Title
Papers of Robin Wallace-Crabbe
Date Range
1947-1992
Collection Number
MS 8053
Extent
2.24 metres (16 boxes, 3 folio items)
Language of Materials
English
Repository
National Library of Australia

Introduction

Scope and Contents

The papers comprise letters, correspondence of Robin and Virginia Wallace-Crabbe, drawings, photographs, sketchbooks,notes, drafts and other papers relating to Robin Wallace-Crabbe's artistic and literary career. The drafts include nine published novels and various unpublished novels, articles, short stories and other writings. Also includes papers of Kenneth Wallace-Crabbe relating to his experiences in Burma during World War II and drawings by Wally Driscoll.

Conditions Governing Access

Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn1567098).

Conditions Governing Use

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred Citation

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Robin Wallace-Crabbe, National Library of Australia, MS 8053, [series and/or file number]'.

Provenance

The papers were received in three instalments: October 1989, March 1992 and June 1996.

Biographical Note

Robin Wallace-Crabbe is a painter, print maker and writer. He was born in Melbourne in 1938 and studied art at the Melbourne Technical College. His father was Kenneth Wallace-Crabbe, a Melbourne journalist, and his brother is Chris Wallace-Crabbe, a poet and academic.

In his early working life, Wallace-Crabbe worked as an artist and art teacher. He first exhibited in 1961 and has had over 30 solo and group exhibitions in Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, Adelaide and Brisbane. His works are represented in many Australian galleries.

In 1978 Wallace-Crabbe published his novel Feral Palit followed by Goanna (1982), his comic family history, Australia, Australia (1989) and Dogs (1993). Under the pseudonym Robert Wallace he has published his crime thrillers To catch a forger (1988), An axe to grind (1989), Pay day (1989), Paint out (1990), Flood rain (1991), Finger play (1991) and Art rat (1993).

Robin Wallace-Crabbe has also worked as an art and literature reviewer and as a cartoonist for the Canberra Times.

Item Descriptions

Series 1. Letters, 1978-92

Comprises mainly printouts of letters from his computer to his publishing company, Gollancz, and his New York agent, Ben Camardi from Harold Matson, as well as to friends and others.

Undated letters (File 1) - Box 2

Letters, 1978, 1987-1992 (File 2-5) - Box 2

Series 2. Business correspondence, 1976-92

Contains correspondence relating to his artistic and literary career. Major correspondents are staff members from Gollancz and Collins/Angus and Robertson and his agents Harold Matson (NY) and Curtis Brown Australia.

Undated correspondence (File 1) - Box 2

Business correspondence, 1976-92 (File 2-8) - Box 2, 3

Series 3. General correspondence, 1977-92

Correspondence of Virginia and Robin Wallace-Crabbe. Correspondents include Peter Corris, Chris Wallace-Crabbe, Patrick White, Roger McDonald, Rhyll McMaster, Geoffrey Dutton, Drusilla Modjeska, Kerry Walker, Marion Halligan, David Malouf and Jack Hibberd.

Undated correspondence (File 1-2) - Box 3

Correspondence, 1977-92 (File 3-9) - Box 4

Patrick White correspondence, 1978-81 (File 10) - Box 4

Series 4. Drafts of published novels, ca. 1978-91

Subseries 4-1. Feral Palit, ca. 1978-89

Book of handwritten drafts, ca. 1978 (File 1) - Box 5
Printout copy (revised edition) (File 2) - Box 5
Corrected typescript (second edition) (File 3-4) - Box 5
Corrected photocopy of proofs (folio item) (File [unnumbered]) - Box 5

Subseries 4-2. Goanna, ca. 1981-82

Corrected typescripts (File 1-3) - Box 1

Subseries 4-3. To catch a forger (Essington 1), ca. 1988

Exercise books of handwritten drafts (File 1) - Box 5
Typescripts (File 2-4) - Box 5

Subseries 4-4. An axe to grind (Essington 2), ca. 1989

Exercise books of handwritten drafts (File 1-2) - Box 6
Typescripts (File 3-8) - Box 6

Subseries 4-5. Finger play (Essington 4), ca. 1989

Typescripts (File 1-6) - Box 7

Subseries 4-6. Pay day, ca. 1989

Printouts (File 1-3) - Box 7, 8

Subseries 4-7. Australia, Australia, ca. 1989

Three exercise books of handwritten drafts (File 1) - Box 1
Typescripts (File 2-4) - Box 1, 8

Subseries 4-8. Paint out (Essington 3), 1988-ca. 1990

Printouts (File 1-7) - Box 8, 9

Subseries 4-9. Flood rain, ca. 1991

Corrected printouts (File 1-8) - Box 9, 10

Subseries 4-10. "Dogs", ca. 1991

Typescript annotated "first idea for 'Dogs' utterly changed since" (File 1) - Box 10
Printout and handwritten editorial notes (File 2-3) - Box 10
Printouts, 1991 (File 4-10) - Box 10, 11

Series 5. Drafts of unpublished novels

Subseries 5-1. "Tumbling pigeons"

Typescripts (File 1-5) - Box 11

Subseries 5-2. "Wolf", ca. 1988

Two exercise books of handwritten drafts (File 1) - Box 12
typescripts (File 2-4) - Box 12

Subseries 5-3. "Mediterranean sunset"

Printouts (File 1-4) - Box 12

Subseries 5-4. "Essington 5", ca. 1989

Printouts (File 1-6) - Box 13

Series 6. Papers relating to novels, ca. 1988-91

Edits and plot notes for Dogs, "Essington 5", Flood rain, and other writings (File 1) - Box 14

Plot notes for an Essington Holt novel ("Essington 6"), Flood Rain, Pay Day, and other writings (File 2) - Box 14

Plot notes and other papers mainly relating to Finger Play (Essington 4) (File 3) - Box 14

Plot notes and edits relating to Flood Rain and other writings (File 4) - Box 14

Papers relating to "Wolf" (File 5) - Box 14

Papers relating to "Dogs" (File 6) - Box 14

Editorial suggestions for To Catch a Forger, Finger Play, An Axe to Grind and other novels (File 7) - Box 14

Miscellaneous papers, 1988-91 re Wallace-Crabbe's novels (File 8) - Box 14

Includes invitation cards to book launches, Gollancz new book sheets, dummy covers, reports to publishers on novels, and transcripts from programs of Pulp!, 3RRR's crime fiction show relating to Flood Rain and Paint Out.

Series 7. Other writings, 1979-90

Drafts of radio play "Follow the particle vacuum modulator", 1988 (File 1) - Box 1

Drafts of radio play "Follow the particle vacuum modulator", 1988 (File 2) - Box 15

Drafts of short stories including "One man's meat", 1987, "Bee sting", and "Lady day- for love cries" (File 3) - Box 15

Drafts of short stories "Futures in fuchsia", 1980, and "Landshark", 1989, and a draft re David Campbell, 1979 (File 4) - Box 1

Non-fiction writings (File 5) - Box 15

Including book reviews; drafts of a piece on the film Ordinary people; an autobiographical narrative; travel pieces; drafts of "A day's thoughts in the life of an axolotl", 1990, for a gallery opening; and a draft entitled "Patrick White and me", 1990 for Clayton Joyce's book of tributes.

Miscellaneous writings (File 6) - Box 15

Including a piece for a Gary Hart exhibition, dialogue for the Canberra Dance Theatre 1991 performance and material for writers' courses.

Four exercise books labelled "French journal" (File 7) - Box 15

Typescript and handwritten pieces on travel in Europe (File 8) - Box 15

Series 8. Tynte Gallery papers, 1983-87

Correspondence, catalogues, stock sheets, receipts, biographical details of art career, records of sales and other papers relating to Robin and Virginia Wallace-Crabbe's exhibitions and general dealings with the Tynte Gallery (File 1) - Box 15

Series 9. Personal papers, 1966-96

Art papers, 1984-91 (File 1) - Box 15

Literary papers, 1982-90 (File 2) - Box 16

Notebook (File 3) - Box 16

Poetry, short stories and other writings of Chris Wallace-Crabbe, Rosemary Dobson and others (File 4) - Box 16

Papers relating to the purchase of his IBM computer, 1988 (File 5) - Box 16

General papers, 1982-91 (File 6) - Box 16

Cuttings file, 1968-88 containing articles by and on Wallace-Crabbe collected by his mother-in-law (File 7) - Box 16

Cartoons by "Wal" for the Canberra Times and elsewhere, ca. 1966 (File 8) - Box 16

Personal letters and postcards, 1992-96 (File 9) - Box 16

Sketchbooks - Paris, 1985 (File 10) - Box 16

Photographs, including family (nd) (File 11-12) - Box 16

Sketchbook of drawings by Wallace-Crabbe (folio item) (File) - Folio 1

Original illustrations for Alister Kershaw's Village to village: misadventures in France, Angus and Robertson, 1993 (folio items) (File 2) - Folio 2

Series 10. Papers of Kenneth Wallace-Crabbe

Writings, maps, photos, painting, cuttings, notes re experiences in Burma during World War II (some of the material is dated 1947) (File 1) - Box 17

"Burma: thousand mile retreat" by Kenneth Wallace-Crabbe (folio item) (File 2) - Box 17

Drawings by Wally Driscoll for an unpublished book (folio item) (File 2) - Box 17

"Search for nothing" by Kenneth Wallace-Crabbe (folio item) (File 2) - Box 17


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