Brisbane in the 1930s was a city in transition, its civic architecture and riverside vistas gradually defining a distinctive urban character. For artists, the city offered a blend of neoclassical government buildings, timber houses scattered across hillsides, and the ever-present curve of the river. To stand on South Bank and look across the water was to see Parliament House and its neighbouring offices rising in quiet dignity above the shoreline. Like a window into the past, part of the joy in encountering Lahey’s city views today lies in identifying the landmarks that remain and recognising how her vision imbued them with atmosphere and meaning.
Vida Lahey was among the first painters to turn sustained attention to Brisbane as a subject matter. At a time when many painters sought inspiration in European models or pastoral landscapes, she showed that her own surroundings could be just as compelling. Her paintings transform the seemingly ordinary into lyrical compositions, where shifting light on water and the geometry of civic buildings are rendered with clarity and warmth.
“…She has caught the atmosphere of Brisbane and Queensland, which she knows so well. In truly remarkable blending’s of light and colour, which have resulted in some really wonderful achievements”[1]
Trained in Brisbane, Melbourne and later in Europe, Lahey brought an international sensibility back to Queensland. Her impressionist technique, quick and luminous brushstrokes, subtle harmonies of colour, and a sensitivity to light, found fresh application in her city views of the 1930s. Works such as Brisbane to Southbank c.1930, Lahey transforms a familiar view into a luminous tribute to the city she loved. In these canvases, Brisbane is not merely recorded but idealised, its presence on the riverbank made radiant through her eye.
Lahey’s prominence extended beyond her own painting practice. She was a founding member of the Queensland Art Fund and one of the most influential advocates for the Queensland Art Gallery in the first half of the twentieth century. Her pioneering children’s art classes in the 1930s testified to her belief in the social value of creative education, and her public advocacy ensured that art was seen as integral to community life. Through these roles she became one of Queensland’s most respected cultural figures, shaping both the way the city was represented and the way the public engaged with art.
Brisbane to Southbank exemplifies her achievement. The painting captures a recognisable corner of the city at a moment of growth, yet distils it into a composition alive with colour, reflection and atmosphere. In its balance of realism and idealisation, it encapsulates Vida Lahey’s vision as an artist who made her surroundings luminous, and in doing so secured her place as one of Queensland’s most significant women artists.
By Hannah Ryan, Senior Art Specialist
[1] Bonsey, N., ‘Vida Lahey’s Ditchling View’, Daily Standard, Brisbane, 9 June 1936, p. 4
Top Image: VIDA LAHEY (1882-1968) Brisbane to Southbank c.1930, oil on plywood, 24.5 x 29.5cm. Estimate $40,000 – $50,000
September 2025