Guide to the Papers of Hilda Rix Nicholas

Series 1. Letters of Hilda Rix Nicholas, 1912-1950s

Hilda Nicholas was an inveterate letter writer. This series comprises two substantial groups of letters written by Hilda, the first to her close friend Dorothy Richmond (1927-1961) and the second to her son, Rix, while he was at boarding school (1942-1949). Together this correspondence provides a vivid account of Hilda's life, much of it relating to her work and her thoughts on trends in modern art. There are also a small number of letters written by Hilda to others. (Note: see also Series 3 for letters to Hilda from Rix and Series 4 for letters of Dorothy to Hilda.)

Series 2. Letters of Edgar Wright, c1934-1953

This series comprises a small group of letters written by Edgar Wright to Hilda, Rix and Dorothy Richmond.

Series 3. Letters of Rix Wright, 1941-1951

From 1942 to 1949, Hilda's son, Rix Wright, attended boarding school, firstly at Tudor House School in Moss Vale (1942-1943) and then at Geelong Grammar School in Victoria (1944-1949). This series comprises the many letters he wrote to his parents during his time at school. There are also letters he wrote to Dorothy Richmond and a small number of letters written to Rix by school friends.

Series 4. Letters of Dorothy Richmond, 1918-1961

In 1919, when Hilda moved to Sydney, she met Dorothy Richmond (later Mrs Walter Wright) who was known to Hilda and her family as 'Dodo'. She was to become Hilda's lifelong friend and confidante and they corresponded on a regular basis for the rest of their lives. Through their letters they discussed all aspects of their lives, including issues relating to Hilda's art and career. Hilda kept many of Dorothy's letters and they are contained in this series. There are also a small number of letters Dorothy wrote to others, including Rix (her godson), Edgar and members of her family. (Note: see Series 1 for letters Hilda wrote to Dorothy and Series 8 for papers relating to her trip to Europe with Hilda)

Series 5. Letters of Henrietta Gulliver, c1928-1945

On her return to Australia in 1918, Hilda met Henrietta Gulliver, a still life and landscape painter in Melbourne. Gulliver (known to Hilda as "Koala") was at one time President of the Women's Art Club (formed in 1902 and today known as the Melbourne Society of Women Painters and Sculptors) and one of the original members of Twenty Melbourne Painters (formed in 1918). She became a surrogate mother figure to Hilda and helped rekindle her interest in her career. They remained friends until Gulliver's death in 1945. This series comprises letters written by Gulliver to Hilda.

Series 6. Letters of Nancy and John Emery, 1942-1957

In 1942, Hilda and Edgar Wright became the guardians of John Emery, a school friend of Rix at Tudor House School, Moss Vale. His mother, Nancy, and his father were an English couple working in India. They had enrolled John into boarding school in Australia as it was closer to India than schools in England for the purpose of home visits. However, with the outbreak of war, no travel was permitted and they did not see their son again until 1946, after which they returned to England. John Emery spent many of his holidays at Knockalong with the Wright family. Contained in this series are the letters written by both Nancy and John Emery to the Wright family.

Series 7. General correspondence, 1908-1961

This series comprises correspondence with friends and acquaintances, together with business correspondence relating to Hilda's work and her day-to-day life. Apart from correspondence with Howard Ashton (1937-1956), with whom Hilda developed a close friendship, there is only a small amount of correspondence with other artists. There are a small number of letters from Will Ashton, Bernard Hall and William Moore. There are photocopies of letters (the originals of which have been retained by the family) from Datillo Rubo (1919) and Rupert Bunny (1939).

The earliest letters relating to Hilda's career as an artist comprise letters from Charles Masson (1913-1928), one time Director of the Musée du Luxembourg in Paris and from A.G. Potin of the Galerie de Tableaux, Paris. Throughout the series there are letters from various galleries relating to exhibitions and sales of Hilda's work. Hilda's last exhibition was held in 1947 at the Sedon Gallery, Melbourne. There is correspondence with Will Ashton, W. R. Sedon and Sir Keith Murdoch relating to the exhibition.

While Rix was attending Geelong Grammar School, Hilda developed a friendship with the Headmaster, James Darling, and his wife, Margaret, and she continued to correspond with them well after Rix had finished his schooling. In 1949 Hilda presented a portrait of Darling to the school.

There are a large number of letters from friends and acquaintances including Lydia Crawford, Lucy Haase, Meg Line, Jill Lobb and Gwen Wilson (Henrietta Gulliver's daughters), Andy McLelland, June Potts, Mary Raphael (known to Hilda as 'Bunny') and Beatrice Tange (known to Hilda as 'Ticky').

Included in this series is a small group of early letters to Hilda's mother and to her sister Elsie (1908-1914).

Series 8. European trip, 1924-1926

In 1924, Hilda and her close friend Dorothy Richmond travelled to Europe for an extended stay. Hilda took with her a number of her paintings, with the intention of promoting Australian art and the Australian way of life. Exhibitions of her work were held in London and Paris. In Paris, Hilda hired a studio overlooking the Luxembourg Gardens and she and Dorothy lived there in a small attached area. Together they toured regional France, with Hilda capturing life in small villages. In 1925 the French Government purchased her painting In Australia. In 1926, Hilda was honoured to be appointed an Associate of the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. They returned to Australia in 1926.

This series comprises papers relating to Hilda's time in Europe. There are letters written by Hilda and Dorothy to Dorothy's family, letters from friends and correspondence relating to exhibitions of Hilda's work and to her appointment to the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. Correspondents include John Masefield, John Galsworthy, Dion Boucicault and Mary Raphael (known to Hilda as 'Bunny').

During their time away, Dorothy Richmond kept a record of the trip in the form of letter books. The originals were sent home and the carbon copy remaining in the book formed a journal of their activities. The five journals she created are contained in this series. They also include whimsical drawings by Dorothy. In some cases the original pages of the journals are also held. In addition, Dorothy wrote several articles relating to their experiences and manuscript and typescript copies of them are included.

Series 9. Exhibition catalogues, 1912-1971

During the course of her career, Hilda's works were included in a number of exhibitions, both in Australia and in Europe. This series comprises catalogues from those exhibitions. The earliest catalogue in the series dates from a 1912 exhibition in Paris, at which one of Hilda's works was purchased by the French Government for its national collection. At a 1925 exhibition in Paris another of her works, In Australia, was also purchased for the collection. Following this exhibition, Hilda was made an Association of the Paris Salon.

The latest catalogue is for a retrospective of Hilda's work, held in 1971 at the Joseph Brown Gallery, Melbourne.

Series 10. Photographs, 1885-1940s

The bulk of this series comprises black and white prints and photocopies of photographs, the originals of which have been retained by the family. The photographs span a number of years and relate principally to Hilda's career. There are photographs of many of her paintings and of an exhibition of her works held in the Guildhall, Melbourne, in 1918, on her return from Europe. There are early photographs from the 1920s of Hilda on painting excursions to French country towns and the Australian countryside and photographs of her studio at Mosman (c1920), which were taken by Harold Cazneaux.

There are family photographs dating from 1885 and a packet of mostly unidentified and undated small black and white photographs, most of which appear to have been taken at Knockalong. There are also a small number of photographs of the homestead at Knockalong and photographs of Hilda in her studio, which were taken by Max Dupain.

Access to the digital content in Series 10/File 15 is available on-site (upon request) in the Special Collections Reading Room via the Virtual Reading Room.

Series 11. Writings

Contained in this series is a small group of writings by Hilda. There are notes and drafts of an unpublished autobiography entitled 'In search of beauty'; the draft of an article entitled 'Art of the moment and through all the ages', nd and writings by Hilda about her art. There are drafts of papers presented by Hilda at institutions including The Art Circle of the Lyceum Club, Sydney, nd; Sydney University, 1927; the Country Women's Association, nd and the Women Painters Society, 1920. There is also a copy of a London journal entitled Drawing & design - a magazine for students of art, Nov 1925, which includes an article by Hilda about her art.

3 files

Series 12. Newspaper Cuttings, c1900-1949

This series comprises newspaper cuttings relating to Hilda's career and to her sister Elsie, who performed in musical recitals when they lived in Melbourne. There are early cutting books compiled by Elsie, including one which was continued by Hilda after Elsie's death in 1914. There is a small group of loose cuttings.

Series 13. Financial papers, 1916-1955

Contained in this series are a small group of financial papers accumulated by Hilda. There are accounts for art supplies and equipment, household goods, clothing and stationery, several bank statements and a number of cheque butts. There is an account from the Hotel Cecil, London for October 2-10, 1916 when Hilda was married.

Series 14. Family papers, 1906-1930s

This series contains papers relating to Hilda and her family. There are travel journals and scrapbooks kept by both Hilda and her sister Elsie during their trip to Europe, which commenced in March 1907, early ephemera and a scrapbook of poetry and verse compiled by Elsie.

There are papers relating to Knockalong, the originals of which have been retained by the family. They comprise correspondence relating to the purchase of furnishings for the house and art supplies for Hilda and sketches of Hilda's proposed studio, alterations to the house and the garden layout.

Much of the material in this series comprises photocopies of originals which have been retained by the family.

Series 15. Postcards

During her travels in Europe from 1907 to 1918, Hilda accumulated a large group of mostly black and white postcards to use as aide-mémoires in her work. The postcards are contained in this series and have been sorted into the following categories: Paris, London, Etaples, Italy, Holland and Works of art.

10 packets

Series 16. Miscellaneous

Contained in this series is a small group of miscellaneous papers accumulated by Hilda. Included are drafts of children's stories written by Hilda's close friend, Dorothy Richmond, and a typescript of poetry composed by another friend, Mary Raphael.

2 files and one small box

Series 17. Trips to Morocco, 1912-1914

In 1912, Hilda travelled by boat to Tangiers where she spent two months painting. In 1914 Hilda returned to Tangiers for three months, accompanied by Elsie.

Contained in this series are letters and postcards written by both Hilda and Elsie during the two trips. There is also a letterbook-style journal kept by Elsie in which she records their daily activities. She wrote in it while Hilda painted and it includes evocative on-the-spot descriptions of their exotic surroundings and interesting events that occurred.

Series 18. Scrapbooks, c1903-1909

This series comprises two scrapbooks created by Hilda. One contains early sketches and watercolours and the other, titled 'In the Latin Quarter', contains sketches, cuttings, photographs and ephemera for the period 1907-1909.

Two items