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James William Govett (1910 – 11 July 1998) was an Australian impressionist who worked mostly in watercolor and oil, focusing on landscapes and portraits.
Govett was born in 1910 in the small suburb of Hawthorn in Melbourne, Australia, to parents Alexander and Helena Nellie Govett. During Govett's childhood, his family moved often due his father's job as a State Savings BankBranch Manager. Govett studied art at the National Gallery School in Melbourne, and later at the Max Meldrum School from 1930 to 1939 while working as a bank clerk at the State Bank. His mother was also a painter and studied with Max Meldrum from 1931 to 1950.
Govett served in the Army in the Pacific during World War II for five years, and was awarded the Pacific Star for his service. After the war, he moved to London, where he studied under Thomas Dugdale at the Chelsea School of Art in 1947.
Career
During his lifetime Govett lived in London and Melbourne, having a studio at 22 Cheyne Gardens, Chelsea, London in the early 1970s. While in London, he produced portraits of adults and children, as well as contemporary scenes of the city. He also did copies of old masters' works such as Rembrandt at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. One of his most famous portraits, "Portrait of Sir Charles Mackerras", was exhibited at Qantas Gallery, London.
In later years, he returned permanently to Melbourne and resumed his residence at 22 Scenic Crescent, Kalorama, in the Dandenongs. He died on 11 July 1998 and was buried at the Kangaroo Ground Cemetery on 16 July 1998.
Exhibitions
National Gallery School, Melbourne - 1946
Athenaeum Gallery - 5 January 1953 (Joint Exhibition with Nellie Govett)
Athenaeum Gallery - 29 April 1957 (Joint Exhibition with Nellie Govett)
Soroptomist Headquarters (Victoria), South Yarra - September 1993 (A retrospective art exhibition of two artists – mother and son: Helena Nellie Govett and James Romaine Govett)
Known portraits
Sir Lawrence Bragg. Exhibited Qantas Gallery, London. 1966, (Correspondence in National Archives, London).
Viscount Bruce of Melbourne. (1948/9) Commissioned by United Nations. UNESCO Paris
The Earl of Caithness (Malcolm Sinclair, 20th Earl of Caithness) (London 1967). Exhibited at Hilton Gallery, London. 197-?) (Caithness Collection, Scotland)
Prof. A.C. Chisholm (1953) submitted for Archibald Prize.
Madame Fernanda Milinaire, wife of Didier Milinaire, son of the Duchess of Bedford. Exhibited at Woburn 1972.
Sir Alexander Downer, Australian High Commissioner, London. Exhibited Qantas Gallery, London. 1966?
James Govett (1960) (self portrait: titled on verso "The Laughing Artist") (Private Collection, Melbourne)
John Govett (Private Collection, Melbourne)
Mrs (Nellie) Govett (after Max Meldrum portrait) Kyneton Historical Society (Bequested by the artist)
