Vew from the chair: Speeches of Richard WL Austin

books do furnish a room, don't youl'. The wife was not amused and the affair was short-lived. I have often thought that if I had ever found myself in a similar situation, which God forbid, and had I wished to start up a light conversation, which seems improbable, I would at least have had the good sense to suggest that books do much more than furnish a room. I am sure that is a view with which you will all be in total agreement. The possession of books is, indeed, the main thing that differentiates us from the anthropoid apes. They provide the very basis of our civilisation. They are the first things that rulers, when they disapprove of their contents, put to the flames. For hundreds of years they have stimulated the mind and, since the introduction of colour photography and reproduction, they have delighted the eye. The book which is being launched today, Tropical Visions, does both these things. Indeed, it has much going for it, as they say. When I first opened it up, I noted with pleasurable comfort that the author, John Millington, had gone to the same school as I had, though not quite at the same time. Nevertheless, I felt that this would at least ensure that the writing would be elegant and the grammar impeccable. And I have not been disappointed. On the visual side, I have noted that one former Trustee of the Gallery Uohn Rigby] and one current Trustee [Lawrence Daws] both have paintings reproduced in the book and, further, that a number of other artists, whose works appear in the book, have works hanging in the Gallery. But even more than that-the really exciting thing about Tropical Visions is that it is the first book to be produced about Queensland artists only. For the first time, Queensland art, in glorious technicolour, so to speak, is highlighted in Tropical Visions. Twenty-six artists are represented and they include some of Queensland's finest. I am pleased to learn that the book has already created international as well as national interest, as our Queensland State Librarian, Mr Laurie Ryan, has presented a copy to the Government of the People's Republic of China. Even Sydney dwellers, usually more interested in the art world south of the border, have shown a definite interest in it. I cannot do better than quote from the media release: 'This unequalled collection provides a feast of brilliant images, ranging in style from the realistic and figurative to the abstract, decorative aAd avant-garde. It also demonstrates the vigorous re-emergence of regionalism in art'. The author is to be congratulated for putting this book together and for writing the text, the University of Queensland Press for publishing it and the Gallery Society for supporting it. I have great pleasure in declaring that the book is now launched, and asking the author to say a few words. 4 Speech to introduce the Hon. Sir James Killen, KCMG to launch Women of the Year, December 1987 A few weeks ago in this same Gallery, I did something I have never done before. I launched a book. 107