To mangle the words of Oscar Wilde, for an institution to lose a miniature portrait would be unfortunate…. to lose a life-sized, framed oil painting sounds more like carelessness. Catherine Hayes (1818-1861) was a celebrated, Irish born soprana who toured Australia extensively in the mid 1850s. At
Read more →First, a little background. In 1931, art collector George Garnett presented prominent Hobart surgeon Dr. Victor Ratten with a gift, in thanks for saving the life of his 14 year old daughter Myra. Appropriately, the gift was a large oil painting of the British nurse Edith Cavell.
Read more →