Cook, Banks, Solander & Harrison

Leon Pericles

Cook, Banks, Solander & Harrison

37 x 49 cmetching, giclee and collage

This etching is about the 1770 Expedition to Australia and refers to the influence of Captain James Cook, Joseph Banks, Daniel Solander and John Harrison.

The key illustration in this artwork is my interpretation of ‘The Great Cabin’ on Cooks’ boat, which has only been written about and never captured visually. Banks was from a wealthy family of high stature and came on board bringing many trinkets, tools and items for his scientific discoveries that filled three small cabins, which were originally intended for crew. He then eventually overtook ‘The Great Cabin’ which was designed to have room for rolling out maps and navigating. It become so filled with items Banks had collected on their travels that Cook could no longer enter the room with his maps. He had things like microscopes, weights, books and specimens he had collected. Because of this he clashed with Cook, and was even rumoured to have brought ladies on board against the rules.

Despite this, Banks was talented at his job and produced a thorough archive of Australian flora and fauna. There are even some species that are extinct here but still exist in the London archives. The Banksia was named after Banks, and pictured in the artwork.

The European passport was inspired by their high-class background, and the idea that they had them to show their stature and power. When creating the passport I wanted to include Banks’s family crest as this was important to his character, and later realised an image was not available. The National Library of Australia sourced a tiny image, which we blew up and restored which is now replicated on the artwork - passport.

The white part of the clock is a replica of Harrisons Marine Chronometer, a revolutionary timepiece used by the Royal Navy to determine a ship's longitude at sea. The clock was one of the most accurate invented, so successful that he received funding from the royal navy to mass-produce it for their use. The outside gold design of clogs etc is my stylistic choice symbolising Harrison and his inventive mind. The East Coast of Western Australia was some of the most accurate mapping done yet because of the clock.

Solander was the Botanist and illustrator also onboard Cooks ship.


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Description

This etching is about the 1770 Expedition to Australia and refers to the influence of Captain James Cook, Joseph Banks, Daniel Solander and John Harrison.

The key illustration in this artwork is my interpretation of ‘The Great Cabin’ on Cooks’ boat, which has only been written about and never captured visually. Banks was from a wealthy family of high stature and came on board bringing many trinkets, tools and items for his scientific discoveries that filled three small cabins, which were originally intended for crew. He then eventually overtook ‘The Great Cabin’ which was designed to have room for rolling out maps and navigating. It become so filled with items Banks had collected on their travels that Cook could no longer enter the room with his maps. He had things like microscopes, weights, books and specimens he had collected. Because of this he clashed with Cook, and was even rumoured to have brought ladies on board against the rules.

Despite this, Banks was talented at his job and produced a thorough archive of Australian flora and fauna. There are even some species that are extinct here but still exist in the London archives. The Banksia was named after Banks, and pictured in the artwork.

The European passport was inspired by their high-class background, and the idea that they had them to show their stature and power. When creating the passport I wanted to include Banks’s family crest as this was important to his character, and later realised an image was not available. The National Library of Australia sourced a tiny image, which we blew up and restored which is now replicated on the artwork – passport.

The white part of the clock is a replica of Harrisons Marine Chronometer, a revolutionary timepiece used by the Royal Navy to determine a ship’s longitude at sea. The clock was one of the most accurate invented, so successful that he received funding from the royal navy to mass-produce it for their use. The outside gold design of clogs etc is my stylistic choice symbolising Harrison and his inventive mind. The East Coast of Western Australia was some of the most accurate mapping done yet because of the clock.

Solander was the Botanist and illustrator also onboard Cooks ship.

Additional information

Dimensions 49.0 × 37.0 cm
ag_artwork_year

2016
ag_artwork_status

In Edition
ag_medium_text

etching, giclee and collage