Paul von Szinyeiv-Merse - Lovers

Paul von Szinyeiv Merse (1845-1920) - Lovers (1870)
Hungary Stamp issued 1967
Painting Held at the Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest

This painting is typical of Szinyeiv Merse, as it captured upper middle class people in idealised settings in the prosperous countryside.  Merse was one of the earlier impressionist artists of Hungary and Central Europe.  After being trained in Munich, Germany, he was a politician as well as an artist of Hungary.  Another Merse painting is also on this Blog: Lady in a Purple Dress .

Charles Conder - All on a Summer's Day

Charles Conder (1868-1909) - All on a Summer's Day (1888)
Australia 41c Stamp Issued 1989
Art Gallery of South Australia

Charles Conder lived in Australia for only seven years, but he was a key figure from the Heidelberg school of painting, which was responsible for the divergence of "western" Australian art in a modern sense.  This painting was completed at the time when Conder was living in Melbourne and is typical of the light filled paintings of the Australian landscape.  A woman reads a book on the beach, while another artist is also shown on a cliff top with his easel.  Conder left Australia in 1890 to go back to England, but his Australian work remains critically acclaimed.  "Holiday at Mentone" has also been used on postage stamps.

Alexander Jackson - Yukon Territory Highway Near Kluane Lake

Alexander Jackson (1882-1974) - Yukon Territory Highway Near Kluane Lake (1943)

Canada Stamp issued 1982
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa

Jackson, one of the founding members of  Canada's Group of Seven artists, was firstly a commercial artist in Chicago before he headed off to Paris to study Impressionist painting.  He traveled widely during his career, and primarily gained famed through his depictions of the Canadian landscape.   Yukon is depicted in full beuaty, but it is somewhat lonely and desolate at the same time.


This stamp was one of 12 modern art paintings that were depicted on Canada Day in 1982.  The stamps cover the ten provinces and 2 territories that make up Canada.  Rather ironically, A. Y. Jackson's work was used in this stamp issue, even though he made a prediction in 1946 that Canada would become part of the United States by 1971.  (Refer to news story here.)

Edgar Degas - Dancer with Bouquet

Edgar Degas (1834-1917) - Dancer with bouquet

France Stamp Issued 1970

Musee d'Orsay, Paris, France

Degas is regarded as one of the founders of the impressionist movement although he rejected the term, and preferred to refer to his work as realism. He was born into a relatively wealthy family in Paris, and he failed as a law student before embarking on an artistic career.  Degas travelled in Europe in addition to spending time in the United States in the 1870s as he had family there.


Towards the latter half of his career, he was quite successful as he was one of the key painters and organisers of the impressionist movement - however, his works are more known for their emphasis in depicting the beauty of movement of the human form.  As such, ballet is a common subject of Degas' work, consisting of up to a third of all his paintings.  This was quite a contemporary subject at Degas' time, as ballet was a common form of urban entertainment in France at the time when the impressionist movement took place.

John le Capelain - Landscapes from Jersey (Pt 4)

John de Capetain - Jersey Landscapes

Jersey Stamp issued 1987

In contrast to some works by de Captain, this painting depicts a sea at peace.  The waves gently lap at the shore of a large beach, possibly at sunset.  This painting is very similar to the work of Joseph Turner, with haze in the distance.  

Pierre-Auguste Renoir - Nud In Peisaj

Nud In Peisaj - Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) 

Romanian Stamp issued 1976, Painting Completed 1905

Zambaccian Museum, Bucharest

Another impressionism stamp...  this is one of a series of large format stamps that were issued by Romania in the 1970s, and this painting is also held in Romania.  Renoir was key to the development of the impressionism movements in the late 19th century, along with Monet, Pissarro, Sisley, Berthe Morisot, Bazille and others.

Joseph Turner

Joseph Turner - British Landscape Artist

UK 10p Stamp Issued 1975

Query: Does anyone know the name of this painting?? :)

Arthur Streeton - Impression for Golden Summer

Arthur Streeton (1867-1943) - Golden Summer, Eaglemont (1889)
Australia 41c Stamp Issued 1989
Painting Held at the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra

This is one of many well known paintings by Arthur Streeton, who was one of the most influential artists of the impressionist Heidelberg School in the late 1800s in Australia, along with Tom Roberts and Frederick McCubbin.

Streeton lived and worked on the outskirts of Melbourne for much of his life - this work shows a typical scene in country Australia, with long shadows creeping over the fields of sheep - light bathes the scene in a typically Australian style.

Other work by Streeton has been depicted on Australian stamps:

One Penny Fare, McMahons Point .

His contemporaries included:

Frederick McCubbin

Tom Roberts

Frederick McCubbin - Petit Dejeuner

Frederick McCubbin (1855-1917) - Petit Dejeuner (1889)

Australia 41c Stamp Issued 1989

National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne

This painting depicts everyday life in the pioneering times, which was typical of McCubbin's work.  He was one of the leading influences of the Australian impressionist movement, being part of the Heidelberg School of Art in Victoria in the late 1800s.  This is one of his earlier works, before he began to paint in the Australian landscape on the outskirts of Melbourne. 

His more famous works are those that depict everyday pioneering life in the Australian bush.  The people depicted in his paintings modeled in his studio, but they still fitted into the natural bush scenes in a harmonious manner.  On the Wallaby Track has also been depicted on an Australian stamp.  

Tom Roberts - Impression Mentone

Tom Roberts (1856-1931) - Mentone (1888)
Australia 41c Stamp Issued 1989
Painting Held at the National Gallery of Victoria

This painting was completed at the height of the Heidelberg School on the outskirts of Melbourne in the late 1800s.  Tom Roberts developed a very very Australian style of impressionist paintings, where the Australian sunlight almost whitewashes the paintings in golden yellows and whites - truly typical of the Australian summer.

Roberts was known for his landscape paintings, in addition to being revered during his time.  Other paintings of his have been used on Australian stamps:

Opening of the Australian Parliament House, 1901

Shearing the Rams, 1888

Arthur Streeton - From MacMahons Point One Penny Fare

Arthur Streeton (1867-1943) - From MacMahons Point One Penny Fare (1890)

Australia $5 Stamp Issued 1979

Held at the National Gallery of Australia Canberra

This painting is set on one of the most beautiful parts of Australia - on the shores of Sydney Harbour.  This painting captures McMahons Point at a time when it was remote to the city of Sydney, only linked by a ferry service.  The 1930s saw the completion of the Sydney Harbour bridge and this part of Sydney's north shore is now densely developed -  but it is still possible to catch a ferry into Sydney.

Streeton is one of Australia's best loved artists from the Heidelberg school in Melbourne.  He was associated with other great artists, including Tom Roberts and Frederick McCubbin.  They were influenced by the impressionist movement, particularly Turner, which swept through Europe before being taken up in Australia.  Australia's abundance of light and clear skies proved to provide these artists with fertile grounds to make their mark on Australian art history at this time.

Charles Conder - A Holiday at Mentone

Charles Conder (1868-1909) - A Holiday at Mentone (1888)
Australia $5 stamp issued 1984
Art Gallery of South Australia

This high value $5 stamp was issued in 1984, shortly after this painting was purchased by the Art Gallery of South Australia in 1981. It depicts a romanticised Australian summer beach scene on the outskirts of Melbourne in the late 1800s, clearly demonstrating Australians’ love of the beach that has continued until today.

Born in England in 1868 before moving to Australia, Conder was only 20 years old then this painting was completed, having a close working relationship with Tom Roberts in Melbourne as part of the Heidelberg school of artists. He later went on to work in London and Paris before passing away at the young age of 41.  He now has a suburb in Canberra named after him.

Lloyd Rees - Fire Haze at Gerringong

Lloyd Rees (1895-1983) - Fire Haze at Gerringong (1980)
Australia $1.20 Stamp Issued 1997
Art Gallery of NSW Sydney   

This is one of three modern painting stamps that were issued for Australia Day 1997. Other works by Brett Whitely and Fred Williams were also included in this series.

Lloyd Rees lived a long and successful life as an artist, first growing up in Queensland before going onto to become one of the most famous residents of the south coast of New South Wales. This work is very reminiscent of Turner's work in the UK, as Rees has captured the light and colour of the NSW South Coast, while also remaining abstract.