Entry
Elspeth McCombe

2001
gouache on paper
63 x 44 cm image, 83.5 x 64 cm framed

Description
Gouache painting on paper of the entrance hallway at Meroogal. Written in black on the lower left-hand side: ‘Elspeth McCombe ’01’. The painting is set in a dark blue matt and mounted in a wooden frame behind glass.

Significance statement  
Elspeth McCombe was awarded first prize in the 2001 Meroogal Women’s Art Prize for her painting Entry. The regional prize was established by the Historic Houses Trust (HHT) in 1998 to maintain a continuing link between today’s women of the south coast and southern highlands of NSW and its heritage property, Meroogal. The theme for this year was An artistic response to the interiors at Meroogal.

McCombe chose to paint the entry hall at Meroogal with its collection of important family possessions and richly textured and patterned floor coverings. Of the furniture that is depicted, the most significant item is the longcase or grandfather clock which family patriarch, Thomas McKenzie, brought with him when he emigrated from Scotland in 1839. Similarly, the camphorwood chest to the left of the image holds a large collection of Thorburn and Macgregor family memorabilia.

History
Elspeth McCombe created this painting for entry in the 2001 Meroogal Women’s Art Prize. The HHT purchased the work from the artist in 2001.

Image credit
Jenni Carter

Bibliography  
Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales, ‘2001 Meroogal Women’s Art Prize’, Insites, No 30, Autumn 2002, p12
Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales, ‘Women’s Art’, Insites, No 45, Summer 2005, pp6–7
Hughes, Joy & Walker, Meredith, Meroogal, Nowra: a history and a guide, Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales, Glebe, 1988
Ramsay, Janet K, The women of Meroogal, Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales, Glebe, 1988