Fred Ellis
St Paul’s Cathedral Wellington
1945

Artist: Frederick (Fred) Vincent Ellis (1892-1961)
Title: St Paul’s Cathedral, Wellington
Date: 1945
School: New Zealand
Medium: etching with some drypoint
Dimensions: 203 x 260 mm (plate), 274 x 323 mm (sheet)
Watermark: none
Inscriptions/marks: inscribed in pencil with title, edition number, signature and date lower border beyond the plate mark <<St. Pauls Cathedral. Wgtn. 13/50 F.V. Ellis 1945.>>
Condition: good condition, typical matt burn not encroaching on the image
Description: view of Parliament Grounds with the General Assembly Library on the left and a view of the proposed design for the new Cathedral of St Paul, Wellington with a group of figures in the foreground.  Shows Cecil Wood’s 1937 design which had not yet been built. The foundation stone was not laid until 1954 and the design as built was altered. Ellis arrived in Dunedin from Britain in 1922 as an art teacher on the La Trobe scheme where he taught at the Dunedin Technical College until 1925 when he moved to Wellington. Taught at the Wellington Technical College. Famous pupils included John Drawbridge and E Mervyn Taylor. See National Library of New Zealand for bio.
Reference: Gail Ross, ‘New Zealand Prints 1900-1950: An Unseen Heritage’, unpublished PhD thesis, University of Canterbury, 2006, vol. II, Printmakers’ Survey, 2-25.