Margaret Preston

A definitive new survey of Margaret Preston, celebrating her luminous, vivid still lifes, masterful use of colour and her enduring influence on Australian art and design.

As one of the most influential Australian artists of the early twentieth century, Margaret Preston transformed the visual language of the nation through a practice that was both technically innovative and visually unforgettable. Her still lifes, particularly her iconic depictions of Australian native flowers, are extraordinary for their bold compositions and sophisticated use of colour. Banksias, waratahs and gum blossoms become powerful design elements in her hands: rhythmic, graphic and unmistakably modern.
Working across painting, printmaking and decorative arts, Preston continually experimented with materials and technique, forging a distinctive aesthetic that drew from international modernism while seeking to define a uniquely Australian visual identity.
This landmark publication brings together key works and new scholarship in an in-depth survey of Preston's career. It sheds new light on her artistic networks, her complex relationship with First Nations visual culture, and her enduring influence on Australian art and design.
With contributions from leading writers and curators, including Jennifer Higgie, Geoffrey Batchen and Lisa Slade, this book reveals an artist of remarkable vision: one who reimagined the world around her through a distinctly Australian lens, and whose work continues to shape how we see beauty, colour and culture today.

• Format: Hardback
• Pages: 304
• Imprint: Thames & Hudson Aust
• Supplier: Penguin Random House Distribution
• Subjects: Individual artists, art monographs, Individual artists, art monographs, Post-Impressionism, Modernism, Prints and printmaking, Paintings and painting in oils, Early 20th century c 1900 to c 1950, Chiaki Ajioka; Geoffrey Batchen; Elle Freak; Jennifer Higgie; Lévi McLean; Anne Ryan; Lisa Slade; Julia Waite; Margaret Preston; Margaret Preston book; Margaret Preston art; Australian modernist art; Australian art book; NGV exhibition book; National Gallery of Victoria Margaret Preston; Australian art history; Australian still life painting; interiors in art; Australian native flowers art; banksia painting; waratah art; modernist still life; decorative arts Australia; Margaret Preston scholarship; Australian modernism; First Nations influence in Australian art; Indigenous visual culture Australia; women artists Australia history; 20th century Australian art; art and interiors book; design and decoration inspiration; art for interiors; coffee table art book; gift art book Australia; botanical still life art