Drawn by War: The Peter Townsend Collection of Modern Chinese Woodblock Prints in the National Gallery of Australia

Abstract

The Peter Townsend Collection of modern Chinese woodblock prints in the National Gallery of Australia (NGA), Canberra was acquired in 1985. The collection of over 250 items dating from the late 1930s and 1940s and assembled by Peter Townsend (1919–2006) while living and working in wartime China, is one of the largest collections of modern Chinese woodblock prints outside China. Substantial research to identify and catalogue items in the collection was undertaken after its acquisition. In recent years there has been renewed interest in the formation and significance of the collection. Drawing on findings from an international workshop and archival research conducted in Australia, England and ..