Picturing the Pacific

Joseph Banks and the shipboard artists of Cook and Flinders

Author:	James Taylor
Published:	2018
Format:	Hardback, 256 pages
Size:	246 × 189 × 27 mm

£25⁰⁰

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Art and Empire in the Age of Pacific Discovery

An illustrated history of shipboard artists on Cook and Flinders’ voyages – revealing how art shaped Britain’s view of the Pacific.

Picturing the Pacific: Joseph Banks and the Shipboard Artists of Cook and Flinders is a lavishly illustrated exploration of the earliest visual records of the Pacific, as seen through the eyes of the artists who sailed on British voyages of discovery from the 1760s to the early 19th century. These artists – guided by the vision of Sir Joseph Banks – captured landscapes, flora, fauna and the peoples of a region then unknown to most Europeans.

Combining art and science, the images produced aboard the ships of Cook, Flinders and others were more than beautiful: they were political and cultural instruments, designed to inform, entice and encourage British exploration and colonisation. This volume draws from public and private collections around the world to present watercolours, oil paintings, drawings, prints and documents that bring to life the visual legacy of these historic voyages.

Both a historical and artistic journey, this compelling book offers a unique perspective on the frontier of discovery, where curiosity and empire, art and observation intertwined.

About the Author

Dr James Taylor, FRSA, studied at the Universities of St Andrews, Manchester and Sussex. A former curator and exhibitions organiser at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, and a specialist in Victorian paintings, he is an accredited lecturer for the National Association of Fine and Decorative Arts. His previous books include Marine Painting, Rule Britannia! and Your Country Needs You. He is also a passionate collector of artist-drawn picture postcards.