Louis Abrahams

Louis Abrahams (1852-1903) was a British-born Australian tobacconist, art patron, painter and etcher associated with the Heidelberg School art movement, also known as Australian Impressionism. He was one of the earliest and most important patrons of Australian art, supporting the careers of many prominent artists such as Tom Roberts, Frederick McCubbin, Arthur Streeton and Charles Conder. Abrahams was born in London in 1852 and migrated to Melbourne with his family in 1860. He attended the Artisans School of Design in Carlton, where he met McCubbin, and later enrolled at the National Gallery of Victoria Art School in 1871, where he befriended Roberts. He also studied etching under John Mather and Julian Ashton. Abrahams joined Roberts, McCubbin and other artists in establishing the first artists' camp at Box Hill in 1885, where they painted en plein air scenes of the Australian bush. He also visited them at their later camp at Eaglemont near Heidelberg, where he supplied them with many cigar-box lids for painting impressions. These small paintings were exhibited by Roberts, Streeton and Conder in the landmark 9 by 5 Impression Exhibition of 1889, which showcased the new style of Australian Impressionism. Abrahams was a successful businessman who ran the family cigar and cigarette factory with his brother Lawrence. He used his wealth to acquire a large collection of paintings by his friends and fellow artists, as well as to commission portraits of himself and his family. He also lent money to struggling artists and helped them sell their works. Abrahams suffered from depression and committed suicide on 2 December 1903 at his factory. His body was found with a bullet wound in the head and a revolver in his hands. He was buried at the Melbourne General Cemetery. Abrahams' personal art collection was passed down to his grandson, Sir Denys Lasdun, a renowned architect who designed the Royal National Theatre complex on London's South Bank. Abrahams is remembered as a generous and influential figure in the history of Australian art, who contributed to the development of a distinctive national identity through his support of the Australian impressionists.