9631396
- TitleJack Earl papers, photographs and other material
- Creator
- Level of descriptionfonds
- Date
1916-1994 - Type of material
- Reference code9631396
- Physical Description3.76 metres of textual material (14 boxes and 2 outsize boxes), includes photographs
approximately 3,468 photographic prints (27 boxes), includes drawings, clippings, letters, notes, postcards
approximately 1,690 drawings
508 negatives
458 slides
35 transparencies
29 objects
14 paintings
10 audiocassettes (15 hr.)
6 videocassettes
1 film reel - ADMINISTRATIVE/ BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
Jack Earl (1908-1994), sailor and marine artist of Sydney. He is notable for his contributions to the sport of sailing, in particular his 1947 voyage in the Kathleen Gillett, which became the second Australian yacht to circumnavigate the world.
An accomplished commercial artist, Jack Earl documented the voyage in a series of illustrated logbooks which he sent home to his wife Kathleen when the ship was in port. Stories of the Kathleen Gillett’s voyage were also published monthly in Seacraft magazine in articles written by first mate Mick Morris and illustrated by Jack. He additionally subsidised the costs of the voyage by selling paintings along the way. Jack continued to paint for the rest of his life, becoming a sought after marine artist. He worked on commission only, for clients who allowed him a great deal of creative freedom. He was known for the meticulous research that went into his paintings.
Named after his wife Kathleen, the Kathleen Gillett was built in Sydney between 1933 and 1939 by Charles Larsen, who worked from Colin Archer drawings. Rigged in 1941, the boat was home to the couple and their children during the war years and was also used for NSW coastal patrol.
On 26 December 1945 Kathleen Gillett sailed in the first Sydney-Hobart Yacht Race - an event organised by the by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia. In June 1947 Jack Earl and crew set sail to circumnavigate the world in Kathleen, the second Australian yacht to complete this feat.
After being sold by Jack in the 1950s, Kathleen Gillett was used for island trade in Torres Strait and crocodile-hunting expeditions around Bougainville and the Solomon Islands. In 1987 the ketch, was located at Guam and purchased by the Norwegian Government as a Bicentennial Gift to the people of Australia. Kathleen was shipped to Sydney free of charge by Zim Shipping Australasia Pty Ltd, for restoration by Norwegian-descended boat builder Carl Halvorsen. The work was based on photographs and conversations with Jack Earl, and plans drawn up by Alan Payne and Partners.
Reference:
Library correspondence file
Australian National Maritime Museum. "Kathleen Gillett". Accessed 23 July 2024. https://www.sea.museum/whats-on/our-fleet/kathleen-gillett - Collection historyBy descent from Jack Earl to his grandchildren
- Scope and ContentThis collection comprising letters, photographs, objects, preparatory drawings, paintings and objects, documents Jack Earl’s life from childhood until right up to his death. It provides an insight into Earl’s relationships with his friends, family and the Sydney sailing community and shows how he financed his adventures on the sea through his commercial art.
Series 01
Papers, correspondence and other material mainly relating to sailing trips, publishing and painting commissions by Jack Earl
Series 02
Photographic prints, negatives and transparencies
Series 03
Pictorial material by Jack Earl
Series 04
Sailing equipment, commemorative and other personal objects belonging to Jack Earl
Series 05
Technical drawings of yachts and sailing boats
Series 06
Oral history interviews with Jack Earl by Bruce Stannard and other sound recordings
Series 07
Motion pictures collected by Jack Earl - System of arrangementThis collection is arranged into seven series by format.
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