Fact of Life: Beach Umbrellas

In Beach Umbrellas, Nancy Kilgour painted the picture with a lot of glee. She found it to be characteristically Australian and that she uses the beach both as an Australian image and to explore her interest in colour. Kilgour uses, especially in the purple shadows, cast on the sea. The heightening of colour, which adds an abstract element to this casual beach study. The repetition of the rounded shapes of the umbrellas and hat break up horizonal bands of richly applied blue and green paint of the water. – FM. Background from Act Gallery on NSW.

Tennis Champs: Meet the team of world beaters

John Bromwich reached his tennis peak in 1939. Bromwich won his first Australian championship and defeated top-ranking American, Frank Parker, in the Davis Cup singles at Philadelphia, USA.
 

The beginning of Australian tennis

Australia’s place at the top of world tennis has been undisputed almost from the late 19th century. Tennis was brought by English visitors  in the late 1870s. The Melbourne Cricket Club started the first tennis court in 1878. A year later, the first Victorian championships were held in 1880. In 1888, tennis began in Queensland; and the NSW Lawn Tennis Association was formed in 1890; and then the national  body, the Australian Lawn Tennis Association in 1904. Here are some of the great tennis players since 1939. Tennis champions to excel at the game, must be in peak condition physically and mentally. 

Margaret Court won her first Australian  Championship at 17. Court toppled the reigning world champion, Maria Bueno, in 1959. Court won three  Wimbledon titles, the latest in 1970.

Frank Sedgeman won the Australian Championship in 1949; he played for Australia in the Davis Cup in 1950 and 1951. Won the Wimbledon singles, defeating Jaroslav Drobny in 1952. 

Rod Laver was one of our biggest money earners on the circuit. In 1974, Laver became the first player to win a million in prize money.  Don’t let his size worry you. He had a powerful swinging serve and raced to the  net behind it.  After beating Tony Roche in straight sets to win Wimbledon in 1968 he beat John Newcombe in four sets the following year, in the course of winning his Second Grand Slam.

One of the most colourful post-war players Australia has produced was Lew Hoad. He played in his first Davis Cup at 19; he went on to win at Wimbledon in 1956 and 1957; he won the Davis Cup 18 times. He also won the French and Australian titles in 1956. 

Lew Hoad, tennis ace, dies