Thomas Ashby
By early July 1914, Thomas Ashby, the British School at Rome's (BSR) director, finalised his arrangements to attend an international academic tour. On 7 July, he could not have been more excited when he left Porto di Brindisi (Puglia) on that four-month return trip to Australia, Sri Lanka and Malta. His itinerary included some outreach for the BSR and a little time for sightseeing on the way home. Four weeks later his plans were upended when war was declared in Europe. This exhibition is a record of those events, the places he saw, the things he did, and how the trip formed part of his BSR legacy.
Before leaving Italy, Ashby sent this studio photograph to Perth, in Western Australia. On 24 July, it was used by The Western Mail newspaper in an article announcing his imminent arrival. From that day on, he began accuring a celebrity-like status which he propelled through BSR lantern lectures illuminated with stunning images of Rome.
Ashby returned to Rome in early November with a remarkable souvenir: a series of 113 travel photographs. Using those images, this exhibition traces his route across Australia, Sri Lanka, and Malta as he tramps through temperate rainforests, explores ancient archaeological sites, hikes in mountain ranges, and rides in a national park. Importantly, many of the photographs were taken during small group excursions, and whilst that limited his ability to frame them perfectly, the series does offer a unique, unfiltered view of his experiences.
Ashby was an avid photographer, and the BSR preserves more than 8,000 images, many of which he took in Italy. This virtual exhibition is the first to showcase his overseas photographs. It provides a new perspective on Thomas Ashby and his contribution to the BSR, a century after his directorship (1906 to 1925).
Photograph from article: 'Some Visitng Members of the British Association', Western Mail (24 July). 31 [This photograph of Thomas Ashby has been sourced from the collections of the State Library of Western Australia and reproduced with the permission of the Library Board of Western Australia.]
