Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 3 : Presscuttings, Sept 1959 - Sept 1967

The111Gn • .Ur. ll•r.,111 de \ 'alll 1111111 • • .........1 •• ir.. mlllln.. • lrr. ploll •• lhropl" I ..... arl ••n• 111,1,.,... .,r. HI" hr11rf11r1ir,n" IUIHI ne•111•I:,· .C :0110,0110. . Wlfho collects · *i N OONE could say that dapper, chain-smoking . Harold de Vahl Rubin, Queens– land's cultur~d, Eton-educated millionaire philanthropist, has had a one-sided experience of life. • He is the son ot o former Mel- 1,oume wharf laborer who turned pedlar and · mode o substantial folfun,e. HAROLD RUBIN CAN'T RESIST • His early schooling was obtained in the rugged end primitive con• dftions ot Australia s north-west, wliere his motes were the children A WORK OF ART-OR A WORTHY of pearl div~rs. • He is as much at home in the rough-and-tumble of life in the Outback as in the sophisticated atmosphere of Paris. . As one ot Austrnlln·s most successful grnzlcrs he ls n flrst– cl11~s Judge or sheep- nnd or priceless ob.lects or art, which he collects with nn artist's appre- ciation • tn the oast 10 ycni-s this cul– tured autct. and unnssumln!( mnn has C!lven nenrly £Jmtlllon to medical nnd charitable organisa– tions F cccntlv nlfi name has 1Jcc11 prominent ill Lhc conLl"Ol'rl'SY over the tu tlll'e or the ouec11s– land No tlonnl Art Gallery:-- Fl'l'lffi""'"" his nenr-centun·-old mansion, Toornk. on Hnmllton Hel11hts. he Is tnkine an nctll'~ Interest 111 the move to separate the Art Ga ll~rv from the com– mercl nllv sponsored Culturnl · Centre. Harold RJbtn, at 61. :, nn artist Jn his c,wn right nncl has been collecttna wo,·ks or nit ror more than 30 v~nrs. The lnrge loun~c-mom nl Too– rak ls almost cluttc1·cct wltl1 oil paintin g, hn111:lnQ from . 01· Pl'OPUtd a gainst, the 1•;nll~. A Die ol adventure 1111111111111111111IIIIIIIll He IS suppoi-Lln~ the. Al't Chl l· lery director, Mr. Rob~1"t Hrolnts by progressh,ely wlthdrnwln~ priceless pnlntlngs,.ccramics. uncl silverware he has l)lf ,1011 1<1nn to the ffallcry since. Jun~ lnst ycur. Mr. Hoines rc1:i::11t d n roitnl•!l1t Rl!O In prc;tc-:,1. :11rnlnst thr OOI'· ernment's Intention to l11corpor– ,,t • the Gallery In the Culturnl Cl'ntre. Harold Rub!ll hn ; lllld an ncl– venturous ure. HIH rather, itarl, Ruhin. rnn caus, awnv 'tram 11on1c 111 Eng-11111,1 at 14, \\r01•kccl his onssn~•~ to Austra– lln. nnct settled In Melbourne. After n few odd jobs he bcgnn wo1·k · on the l"vlelboum e wnter– front. "'I well renwmbe.r my fallicr :ellin~ me with pride lrnlf a ,·entury ngo t:lmt h P could c111Ty . 11 ,sack of flo,•. c·, i1ls bo ck un– nidcd ," he told m e. Mnrk Rubin nm1-i-ird Rebecca tic Vahl Davis In 11195. :ind they llrccl nt No. I Drummond Street, Curlton. in n trrrnce or seven houses hullt by R e.bccco·s Jcwlsil builder fnthe1·. Harold Rubin ,ms µorn tl1cre on Jnnunry 3. 1699. "He sl.111 remembers t.he clrnnt or 11•orkcrs in the cnrly Lnbor l)~y processions Lhnt -,nssed 1he ilo11sc '" ~'.lght hours worl:. Cl\)hl hams PAY. El~h t hours sleep nnri cl~ht bob a dav." Mnrk Rubin· exchnn;,rcd 111s wl1111·r1c·s hook for n PNllar's case nnd later bcg nn d Pnllng in opnls, bullclln:i :.ip nn e:,;1on mor– ke.t to Eurnpe. "I 1·cmcmbc..- my father oncl mollwr nuumlnr.i opal Into puck– In:, cnses nnd smashing It 11·l1h n hnmmcr If it would no, flt," !ir said ns hr chnin-smoked ll;!'Oti!.!h the intf'J'\"i('W, l'llc RulJins moved 10 B1·oome and JICOrll LlH. Thr:rt• H,u-:>lcl Rubin as ll b0Y. !incl h is rlrst ucqualntancc with n,c nol"lh-west coust or Wrstcrn 1\ustr:.1111 . where he now hns vast p11.-..•.ornl holdh~q-r-;. In r. sr:inll. hot cln~sroom lie ~n.1, bch VL'('ll the son of n J:1p– unrbu pnpt·l dl\'Cl' nnd th e l;o11 OJ :1 ·~,t~1lu~ peal'! cil'illPI'. 'M.v rea l ccluen ~i :,n bt'~!nn nt n1::ht when t h e Chlnrsr cool: ni,d tvln1nv hr.:ir,;. 1 1Jo.v tnught m t• Lo pin v pr,~-,.:·. Thi~ wn s Ill~' fh·.:;1 11Jtroducl1on ~o thl' ,,:oriel ul rlnanr:t•:· i1 e S!lid. '''l'h it. ~,h.u:e Gf Ill \' Cll1'1'1.:'Uhllll inust, hJ\"£ ;u •·cd lllC a fol'Llllle THAT NEEDS - anct nclpc<: tu om10 unc-1n Inter life."' The Rubin rnmlly n ext moved 1.0 En~lnnd. whrre Hnrolcl nnd lils olde1· bl'0lhCI'. Bernard. went 10 unlJllc schools and on to ELon. When he was 15 nnd Wor ld 1Vn1· I hnd stnrtcd Hnrolcl Rubin 100<1 uefore n British Annv re– crultlne officer ancl swore he wns 18. His father Intervened with IJlrth ccrtiflcn:,,, howcv r . oncl Hnrnld wrnt bnck to Eton. At 16 he ,rns given n comm is– ~ion ns nn mrnntrv ot11cer \\'tth 1he Coldstrcnm Gnnrds nncl was 111Lnc-hrd to Lord AllcnlJy's forces In ui,, Turkish Cllllll)Uil(n Inherited estate i 1111111111111111 ,\ncr the wn,· he was ctc1iwo1- llscd ns nn honornrv mnJor . Whr.11 his fnther died Hnrold In– herited the responsibilities or the RulJin <•stntc. but under lll'! terms or the will he could not Inherit nny or the Income unt II he wns ~5. "Then rallow,•(I n ,, •ctJc l)Cl"IOCI lrncling In pcnrls betwc,•n Bombnv nnd Pcrs,1111 Oulf POrts. nnd he did 1101 need his rnthcr·, Income from the eslnLc. With the death of his mother nnd brnther Bcrnnrd. who wns un adventurous rnclnu <h'lver nnd pioneer nvlator. Hnrolcl Rubin acquired the whole or th e Rubin estnte or two uropcrtics In Wcste111 Austrulln nncl one lt1 Queensland. He 1>nlll 1 rrloclle visits to Aus– lrnlln to inspect lils pastoral holdings. In Pai-ls his IIHCl"CSIS t11rnccl I (l art ancl t.lic bnllet. When Wo1·ld Wnr 2 stnnccl 11e ;•stnbllshect t.ho Al'ts Thcnt1·l· In London 11nd kcot British nncl 1orelg11 bnllct dnnccrs who hncl bc1°n strnnclecl In Bl·ltnin. in trn in1ni::t n1l<J rn·,u:;cn11.!111 ~ thro111(hout lhe w:11· HELP • o,, Errol Sehaefo1• • --1 nm n eolh-ctor nnd admirer of nnv oblcct or bt•nuty," he says. He admits that the controver– slnl nude po111tm11. La Belle Ho!• lnnclnlsr. ov Picasso I~ his tnv• orltc ob.Icct or urt. He bought It In Englnnd for rnooo nnd 111st l\tav will It to lhe Q11ecnslnnd Art Gollery ror £55,000 bJ• auction nt Sothebys. , H1u·ulcl Ruom·s nnme hns oeen llnkccl with the nnonymous donor who ~nl'c £120,000 worth or nnlnLinl{S 10 the Queenslnncl Art Onllery Inst ) 0 1•111·, Including Ln Bcl!C' Hollnnclnlsc. l. Wlwn lie 1·ct.11rnea to live permon1 •n1.lv In Australia With his raul"lh wife. he bought historic Toornk In 1950 tor t23.000. It was the former hOme of Jud11e Dickson, who Inter become Premier or Queensland. . Harold Rubin contlnueo t.0 collect objects or art on the same scale AS he bought • nd •Old 1>a11to1·al properties. Leet Y<'nr he sold SIX al Ill.I 1nnd holdings for nearly C500,00U. After 11 succeSliful lung cancer opemtton In Sydney In 1957 be begun donating large sums 01 money to .cancer and mcd1cal research with bcQues~ to Sydne1 University and hospltrlls He mari·led 111• prescm ~-,r~ who · came to Australia from Switzerland' !OJ. :,,enrs ago and worked ns n waitress In Sydnes, In the Brisbane Rr.~lstrv orrtoe Inst year Y, as ncaa ol