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The
Cazneaux Family of Photographers
Harold Cazneaux was born in
1878 in Wellington, New Zealand.
His parents Pierce Mott and Emma
Florence Cazneau * both worked in
photographic studios. The family
moved to Adelaide in 1889 and
shortly after Cazneaux joined his
father working in Hammer &
Co. photographic studio where he
was employed as a colourist and
retoucher. Cazneaux also attended
classes at the Adelaide School of
Design, as he wanted to pursue a
career in sketching and drawing.
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Monte
Luke (1885-1962)
Portrait of Harold Cazneaux
Gelatin silver photograph
37.9 x 26.2 cm. |
An international photographic
exhibition was held in Adelaide in 1898
and Australian photographer, John
Kauffmann, was one of the exhibitors.
Kauffmann had spent the previous decade
studying in Europe and had adopted a
pictorialist style of photography. The
pictorialists considered every
photograph a work of art and favoured a
softly focused "impressionist"
style.
Kauffmanns work was a revelation
for Cazneaux who up until this point had
only experienced traditional studio
photography.
Cazneaux moved to Sydney in 1904 and
began work at Freeman & Co.
photographic studio. That same year he
bought his first camera, a Midge box
quarter-plate, and began experimenting
with pictorial photography in his spare
time.
While working at Hammers studio in
Adelaide, Cazneaux met Mabel Winifred
Hodge. In 1905 the two married and moved
to Riley Street, North Sydney.
Freeman Studios were located in George
Street so Cazneaux caught the ferry to
and from work. With the Midge constantly
in his hands the Harbour and city streets
became a rich source of subject matter
for his pictorial photographs.
The Cazneauxs became parents in
1908 when the first of their six children
was born. Rainbow, Jean, Beryl, Carmen,
Joan and Harold became Cazneauxs
most favoured models. His wife Winne was
his most valued critic. All his children
spent time working with him in his
studio.
Cazneaux joined The Photographic Society
of New South Wales in 1907. In the
following years he amassed such a large
body of quality work that he was
encouraged to exhibit on his own.
In 1909 Harold Cazneaux held the first
solo photographic exhibition in
Australia. Seventy-six of his pictorial
photographs were exhibited, and were well
received by the critics and public alike.
In the years following, many of the
photographs were exhibited in overseas
salons and Cazneaux developed a
formidable international reputation.
Kodak ran a competition titled "A
Kodak Happy Moment" in 1914.
Cazneaux entered an album of ten
photographs and won first prize of
£100. The prize money allowed the
Cazneauxs to make a deposit on a home in
Roseville.
"Ambleside" as it was known
soon became the central focus of
Cazneauxs world. Far removed from
the city streets "Ambleside"
was set on a large block of land. A
garden was soon designed and planted by
the family, providing inspiration for
Cazneauxs pictorial photographs.
Pictorial photography had been spreading
amongst a small group of photographers.
In 1916 Cazneaux, Cecil Bostock, James
Stening, W.S. White, Malcolm McKinnon and
James Paton signed the Sydney Camera
Circle declaration. They pledged to
advance pictorial photography showing
Australia in terms of sunlight rather
than shadow.
Although bounding forward in his personal
work, Cazneaux was still shackled to the
conservative studio system with Freemans
Studios. Supporting his large family left
him no alternative.
The pressure of his dual career as a
"pictorialist" and a
traditional photographer finally grew too
great. In 1917 Cazneaux suffered a
nervous breakdown. As a result he
resigned from Freemans and opened his own
studio. Initially located in the city,
redevelopment of the site forced him to
relocate to "Ambleside".
Cazneaux was richly rewarded by the move
to "Ambleside". Profession and
passion now merged. The garden became an
extension of his studio and he was soon
doing brisk business.
Cazneaux had met the publisher Sydney Ure
Smith at his solo exhibition in 1909. Ure
Smith had followed Cazneauxs career
with interest. In 1919 upon launching a
new monthly magazine called The Home, Ure
Smith invited Cazneaux to become official
magazine photographer.
The work for The Home was extensive and
diverse. Cazneaux photographed
Sydneys social elite; artists,
models, actors and the city itself. His
professional relationship with Ure Smith
extended beyond The Home magazine. Many
of Art in Australias publications
featured Cazneauxs photographs
including Sydney Surfing and The Sydney
Bridge Book. During the thirties Cazneaux
received several interesting commissions.
In 1934 he was commissioned to take a
series of photographs for a book
depicting life at Frensham, a girls
boarding school in Mittagong. This was
followed by a commission from BHP who
wanted him to photograph their steelworks
at Newcastle, New South Wales and
Whyalla, South Australia. The resulting
series of photographs were precursors to
a modernist style.
With a certain financial security during
the mid to late thirties, Cazneaux was
able to explore the Australian landscape.
He made several trips overland and was
moved by its grandeur, beauty and
constantly changing light.
In 1938 Cazneaux was made an Honorary
Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society
of Great Britain. For Cazneaux, an
Australian photographer who had never
travelled abroad, it was well deserved
international recognition.
The outbreak of World War II meant a
slowdown in Cazneauxs studio. His
work for The Home magazine had been much
reduced since 1934 when Fairfax and Sons
Ltd. purchased Art in Australia Ltd. from
Sydney Ure Smith. The Home finally ceased
publication in 1942. Cazneaux now turned
his attention to portrait work,
particularly soldiers and their families.
In 1941 tragedy struck when the
Cazneauxs twenty-one year old son
Harold was killed in the defence of
Tobruk. Cazneaux was shattered and never
quite recovered from the loss.
In 1952 a Harold Cazneaux tribute evening
was organised by Keast Burke and Charles
Walton. Hosed by photographer and
historian Jack Cato, magic lantern slides
were accompanied by a recorded commentary
between Cazneaux and photographer Monte
Luke. The evening was a testament to
Cazneaux as a great Australian
photographer. The following year Cazneaux
died aged 75.
* The "x" was added by Cazneaux to
emphasize his French ancestry.
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