On the road to Berrima

Reginald Henry Jerrold-Nathan was born in London in 1889. He studied for five years at the Royal Academy under John Singer Sargent and Sir William Orpen and won the prestigious Royal Academy medal for portrait painting. Jerrold-Nathan also studied briefly in Paris. He served during World War One and arrived in Australia in 1924, on doctor's advice after contracting malaria from his posting during the War in Salonica. Upon his arrival in Sydney he joined the Australian Art Society, whose objective was 'to foster a true Australian outlook in art', and became its President from 1945-52.

Known principally for his portraits, Jerrold-Nathan's royal sitters included HM King George VI, HRH The King of Iraq, and HRH Crown Prince of Sweden. Notable Australians included Sir Charles Lloyd Jones, Sir James Murdoch, the poet Dorothea McKellar, and Australia's cricketing great, Sir Donald Bradman.

Jerrold-Nathan's portraits have been collected by institutions and private collectors across Australia and abroad, including Sydney University, Parliament House, Canberra, and the New England Regional Art Museum collection in Armidale. He continued to paint and teach portrait painting from his studio in Turramurra, until shortly before his death in 1979 at the age of 90.