The Olive Ashworth Collection

Brief description

The Olive Ashworth Textile Collection consists of artwork, fabric and clothing samples, fabric yardage, fashion photographs, price lists and press clippings. Most of the objects in this collection were executed during the 1970s, with a very small number from the early 1980s

Full description

Olive Ashworth (1915-2000), artist, textile designer and photographer studied graphic art at the Art Training Institute, Melbourne in 1931. The impact of the 1930s depression forced her return to Brisbane we she began working in the art department of Burns Philip & Co. At the same time Olive completed a graphic art course by correspondence. In 1947 Ashworth went freelance. Her label, Indigenous Design of Australia was established in 1971. Many of her textile designs were inspired by the Great Barrier Reef (Aquarelle, Coral Garden, Great Barrier Reef, Heron Island, Reef Ballet, Reef Fantasy, Reef, Rhythm, Reef Shells, Mushroom Coral, Feather Starfish, Butterfly Fish, Fringing Reef) and the rainforests in Far North Queensland (Tropical Rainforest, Tropical Cairns, Tropical Fan Palms, Queensland).