Esther Paterson Miss Betty Paterson

Esther Paterson and her sister Elizabeth (Betty) Deans Paterson (1894-1970) were born into an artistic family. Their father Hugh Paterson, brother of landscape painter John Ford Paterson, and mother Lizzie encouraged their daughters to follow creative paths, as did their neighbour, artist Frederick McCubbin.

Esther studied alongside WB McInnes at the National Gallery School under Bernard Hall and later was the subject of McInnes’ 1926 Archibald-winning portrait, Silk and lace. Musically gifted, Betty trained and performed as a classical singer. Esther and Betty also took classes at the Meldrum School of Painting, absorbing Max Meldrum’s tonalist teachings.

The sisters became commercial artists. Their illustrations for The Bulletin, Punch and Lone Hand in the 1920s celebrated independent, modern womanhood and reflected the more liberal spirit of the decade. They were also prominent members of the Melbourne Society of Women Painters and Sculptors.

Esther’s portrait of Betty from the 1938 Archibald was immediately procured by Howard Hinton, a prolific art collector and patron to Australian artists. It is now part of the Howard Hinton Collection at the New England Regional Art Museum, with the title The yellow gloves. When exhibited in the Archibald, Paterson was incorrectly spelled Patterson in the work’s title.