Charles Kerry
Encyclopedia
Charles Henry Kerry was an Australian photographer noted for his photographs that contributed to the development of the Australian national psyche and romance of the Bush.
of New South Wales
. He began working in the Sydney
photo studio of A.H. Lamartiniere in 1875. When Lamartiniere fled from creditors a few years later, Kerry took charge of the company, paying debts and turning around the business. Initially Kerry specialised in portraits but branched into photographing Sydney scenery and society. He was also active in the postcard business. Eventually Kerry turned this small studio into Australia's largest photographic establishment.
In 1885 Kerry was asked to prepare an exhibit of Aboriginal
portraits and corroboree pictures for the 1886 Colonial and Indian
Exhibition. In 1890, the Governor of New South Wales, Lord Carrington
appointed Kerry as his official photographer.
In 1891 Kerry was commissioned to photograph the Jenolan
and Yarrangobilly Caves
. An innovative artist, Kerry used the still-experimental technique of magnesium
flash powder to capture the interior of the Jenolan Caves. By 1900 Kerry handled the major illustrations for the local press. In 1908 he photographed the visit of the American Fleet and the Burns-Johnson heavyweight boxing match. To gain an aerial view of the arrival of the Great White Fleet
he mounted a camera on a box kite.
Charles Kerry first visited Kiandra in 1894 to pursue his mining interests, he returned in 1896 on a photographic tour. The following year with practically no skiing experience was assisted by group including Kiandra ski club members on an historic photography tour to the summit of Mount Kosciuszko
. In 1909 he was elected Founding President of the Kosciusko Alpine Ski Club, which led to the opening up of the area for skiing
and the naming of a run after him.
By 1898 he had the largest photographic establishment in Australia, a three floor building at 310 George Street, Sydney.
From 1913 he made a photographic tour of the Pacific, visiting Tonga
, New Caledonia
, Fiji
, New Guinea
, the Solomon Islands
and Samoa
. Later, in 1928 he accompanied a scientific party to the islands of the Great Barrier Reef
. He died soon after his return at his home in the Northern Sydney suburb of Neutral Bay.
In 1937 Sir Frank Packer named his son after Kerry. Kerry Packer
became Australia's richest man.
Kerry's son G. E. Marni Kerry was an early Australian aviator
and friend of Charles Kingsford Smith
.
in 1980 and donated to the Powerhouse Museum
. Many of these were made freely available in the Commons on Flickr by the Powerhouse Museum
in 2008.
Early life and career
Kerry was born on Bobundra Station in the Monaro regionMonaro
Monaro may refer to several topics:* Monaro , a region in the south of the state of Australia* the Monaro Highway, the main state highway from Canberra to the Monaro region...
of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
. He began working in the Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
photo studio of A.H. Lamartiniere in 1875. When Lamartiniere fled from creditors a few years later, Kerry took charge of the company, paying debts and turning around the business. Initially Kerry specialised in portraits but branched into photographing Sydney scenery and society. He was also active in the postcard business. Eventually Kerry turned this small studio into Australia's largest photographic establishment.
Work & Commissions
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
portraits and corroboree pictures for the 1886 Colonial and Indian
Exhibition. In 1890, the Governor of New South Wales, Lord Carrington
Robert Wynn Carrington, 1st Marquess of Lincolnshire
Charles Robert Wynn-Carrington, 1st Marquess of Lincolnshire KG, GCMG, PC, DL, JP , known as the Lord Carrington from 1868 to 1895 and as the Earl Carrington from 1895 to 1912, was a British Liberal politician and aristocrat.-Background and education:Born at Whitehall, London, Lincolnshire was the...
appointed Kerry as his official photographer.
In 1891 Kerry was commissioned to photograph the Jenolan
Jenolan Caves
The Jenolan Caves are caves in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, Australia; 175 kilometres west of Sydney. They are the most celebrated of several similar groups in the limestone of the country being the oldest discovered open caves in the world...
and Yarrangobilly Caves
Yarrangobilly Caves
The Yarrangobilly Caves are located in a 12 km long karst region along the Yarrangobilly River valley in the north of Kosciuszko National Park, New South Wales, Australia....
. An innovative artist, Kerry used the still-experimental technique of magnesium
Magnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, and common oxidation number +2. It is an alkaline earth metal and the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and ninth in the known universe as a whole...
flash powder to capture the interior of the Jenolan Caves. By 1900 Kerry handled the major illustrations for the local press. In 1908 he photographed the visit of the American Fleet and the Burns-Johnson heavyweight boxing match. To gain an aerial view of the arrival of the Great White Fleet
Great White Fleet
The Great White Fleet was the popular nickname for the United States Navy battle fleet that completed a circumnavigation of the globe from 16 December 1907 to 22 February 1909 by order of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. It consisted of 16 battleships divided into two squadrons, along with...
he mounted a camera on a box kite.
Photographic Excursions
In 1895, Kerry began a Squatter's Service, travelling around the colony photographing squatter's land, homesteads, families and livestock.Charles Kerry first visited Kiandra in 1894 to pursue his mining interests, he returned in 1896 on a photographic tour. The following year with practically no skiing experience was assisted by group including Kiandra ski club members on an historic photography tour to the summit of Mount Kosciuszko
Mount Kosciuszko
Mount Kosciuszko is a mountain located in the Snowy Mountains in Kosciuszko National Park. With a height of 2,228 metres above sea level, it is the highest mountain in Australia...
. In 1909 he was elected Founding President of the Kosciusko Alpine Ski Club, which led to the opening up of the area for skiing
Skiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
and the naming of a run after him.
By 1898 he had the largest photographic establishment in Australia, a three floor building at 310 George Street, Sydney.
Later life
He employed professional photographers and after 1895 took fewer photographs himself. He left the firm in 1911 to concentrate on his mining interests.From 1913 he made a photographic tour of the Pacific, visiting Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
, New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
and Samoa
Samoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
. Later, in 1928 he accompanied a scientific party to the islands of the Great Barrier Reef
Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...
. He died soon after his return at his home in the Northern Sydney suburb of Neutral Bay.
In 1937 Sir Frank Packer named his son after Kerry. Kerry Packer
Kerry Packer
Kerry Francis Bullmore Packer, AC was an Australian media tycoon. The son of Sir Frank Packer and Gretel Bullmore, the Packer family company owned controlling interest in both the Nine television network and leading Australian publishing company Australian Consolidated Press, which were later...
became Australia's richest man.
Kerry's son G. E. Marni Kerry was an early Australian aviator
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
and friend of Charles Kingsford Smith
Charles Kingsford Smith
Sir Charles Edward Kingsford Smith MC, AFC , often called by his nickname Smithy, was an early Australian aviator. In 1928, he earned global fame when he made the first trans-Pacific flight from the United States to Australia...
.
Collections
About 8000 glass negatives from his studio (including some negatives of Henry King which had been purchased by Kerry) were acquired in 1930 by Tyrell's Bookshop, and this collection was purchased by Australian Consolidated PressAustralian Consolidated Press
ACP Magazines , a subsidiary of the Nine Entertainment Co., is an Australian media company. It publishes the Australian Women's Weekly and the Australian edition of Woman's Day....
in 1980 and donated to the Powerhouse Museum
Powerhouse Museum
The Powerhouse Museum is the major branch of the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences in Sydney, the other being the historic Sydney Observatory...
. Many of these were made freely available in the Commons on Flickr by the Powerhouse Museum
Powerhouse Museum
The Powerhouse Museum is the major branch of the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences in Sydney, the other being the historic Sydney Observatory...
in 2008.
Sources
- Jack Cato (1955), The Story of the Camera in Australia. Melbourne: Institute of Australian Photographers.
- David P. Millar (1981), Charles Kerry's Federation Australia. Sydney: David Ell Press.
- Keast Burke, 'Kerry, Charles Henry (1857 - 1928)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 9, Melbourne University Press, 1983, pp 577–578.
- Norman W Clarke (2006), "Kiandra - Gold Fields to Ski Fields".