NOBILI, LUIGI (1907-1984)

"Nouméa" (1931)
Oil on board
33 x 41cm
Signed lower right
*private collection, Sydney
 
Nobili was a prominent, nomadic Italian artist and teacher. Originally from Rome, Nobili boarded the S.S. Maria Cristina in 1928 with 85 of his Italian-themed paintings seeking fame and fortune. However, on arriving in Fremantle, the high customs taxes per painting forced him to burn 50 of his original works, before preceding to Melbourne to exhibit in the 'Decorative Artists' Exposition' under the auspices of the Italian Government. He continued to Canberra, becoming a painting instructor at Manuka Art School briefly in 1929, then settling in a studio in Sydney, where he specialized in Australian landscape scenes, but with a European flavour. He was said to have made 'Balmain look like Paris', and exhibited at the Marcus Clark Gallery. In his short tenure in Australia, he was also a finalist in the Archibald Prize in 1930, with a self-portrait. In 1931, he boarded a ship to Nouméa, New Caledonia, setting up a studio 'La Maison Cheval', and became well known for his charming local landscapes. In 1934, again he relocated, this time to Java and Bandung, Indonesia, working as a influential teacher. He instructed legendary Indonesian artists, Affandi and Barli.