Janet Haslett’s recent suite of paintings is, once again, a bravura exercise in retrieval and invention. The artist’s recent Butcher Shop imagery is drawn from the Holtermann Collection of photographs that document life on the Hill End goldfields in the early 1870s. The photographer was in fact Beaufoy Merlin assisted by Charles Bayliss.
Butcher Boys (Lysaughts), 2014 Oil on canvas 41 x 41cm.
Trawling through the archive, Haslett has isolated images of five butcher shops at Hill End: G.H. Bryants, 2014; Butcher Boys (Lysaughts), 2014; Butchers & Buildings, 2014; Butcher (formerly Krone’s Cottage), 2014; G.H. Bryants (Clarke St), 2014. In all the works the butcher is seen as the proud providore alongside his valuable carcasses. In most cases he is joined by family and friends, some dressed especially for the occasion. There are dogs as well, seen mindful of their place, while relishing the abundance above.
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