Robert Pearce Collection

Full description

Robert Pearce was a co-founder of the Fashion Design Council of Australia (FDC) and a champion of independent fashion in Australia.  Growing up in the Melbourne suburb of Ivanhoe, Pearce had an early interest in fashion. After completing his secondary education, he travelled overseas to the US and the UK and when he returned, he enrolled at Swinburne Technical College to study illustration and graphic design. The course brought together his twin interest in fashion and art. From the late 1970s Pearce’s illustrations began to appear in newspapers and magazines, such as The Age Weekend Magazine, Ragtimes, POL, and Australian Playboy. His skill in fashion illustration soon attracted notable clients such as the Australian Wool Board. 

Pearce became an influential member of Melbourne's dynamic independent fashion scene. In 1982 he joined the community of young designers and artists in Stalbridge Chambers, Melbourne, then a hub for Melbourne's independent fashion, publishing and design communities. The following year began to produce a fortnightly fashion program En masse: Money, Art, Sex and Style, broadcast on 3RRR. In 1984 he co-founded the Fashion Design Council (FDC) with Robert Buckingham and Kate Durham, and was responsible for its visual image, designing newsletters, flyers, invitations, and posters. He also designed advertising and promotions for Melbourne's clubs and bars. In 1984 Pearce launched his own fashion magazine, Collections.  Pearce was a vocal advocate for Queer culture, and sadly died of Aids in 1989, aged 39.

This collection has been acquired in two lots, 0005.2017 comprises 12, 10 archive boxes, and 2 drawers. Printed posters and larger scale works are held in Boxes 2 ,11 and 12. Box 3 contains photocopies of media clippings, designs for book covers, awards, and advertisements for a variety of businesses.  Box 6 contains copies of magazines such as Stiletto, Crowd, Mondo Rock single, Letterheads. Box 9 contains audio reels for ‘en Mass Fashion’ radio show. A detailed inventory is available. The second lot 0011.2018 comprises 67 audio reels relating to En Masse radio show and fashion show promotions.