The Pinschof sisters

Francis Thomas Dean Carrington 1843-1918 was a British born illustrator who was active in Australia from the 1860's to his death in 1918. Tom Carrington, TC as he was known was a prolific and influential illustrator who mainly worked in Melbourne Australia from when he had emigrated from England in the early part of his career and the days when photography was still in it's infancy in newspaper articles. TC characterized the heads of the political establishment along with one of the most famous events in Australian history with the coverage of the capture of the infamous bushranger Ned Kelly. Amongst TC's activities he would cover for the Magazines and newspapers of Melbourne of the Governor's Garden Party along with the Opera openings and performances. There he would get to meet the rich and famous of the Melbourne Australians. The Pinschof sisters, Carmen and Elizabeth, were the daughters of Carl Pinschof and Louise Wiedermann-Pinschof. Carl Pinschof was an Austrian born economist, merchant, banker and financier, also a patron of the arts, his wife Louise was an opera singer who promoted and supported Nellie Melba in her early years also as an opera singer. The Pinschofs were well known throughout Victoria for their support of the arts and music. This portrait of two of the three sisters was drawn in pastel by Tom Carrington in 1910, signed and dated, it is very reminiscent of the painting that Tom Roberts painted around 1900, and which has been very well promoted throughout Australia, a photo of which is enclosed. The pastel is somewhat uncommon and surprising for Tom Carrington in that as an illustrator his familiarity of drawing would be in ink. Consequently this is a rare and very unusual subject and could well be a 'one of' for Carrington.