Description

Extended Data

DAAO URL

https://www.daao.org.au/bio/edward-charles-frome

Birth Place

Gibraltar

Biography

sketcher, engineer, explorer and surveyor, was born in Gibraltar on 7 January 1802, son of Rev. J.T. Frome of Woodlands, Dorset. His parents died of the plague in 1804 and Edward was taken to England. Schooling was followed by entry to the Royal Military Academy in 1817 and he was commissioned royal engineer in 1825. Two years later Frome joined a group of engineers working in Canada on the Rideau Canal; he superintended some of the construction and made all the surveys. He returned to England in 1833 and there married Jane, daughter of Alexander Whalley Light of the 25th King’s Own Borderers. The important post of surveyor-general for South Australia was offered to Frome in 1839. He arrived at Port Adelaide aboard the Recovery on 19 September with his wife, three children and his sister-in-law. Accompanying the group of sappers and miners travelling to Australia to work under Frome on land surveys was James Black Henderson , subsequently one of Frome’s most valued assistants. Initially the situation was most unsatisfactory since Governor Gawler had already appointed Captain Charles Sturt surveyor-general. After Gawler managed to placate Sturt, however, the combined staff worked well together satisfying the enormous demand for land. By the end of 1840 the initial survey was virtually complete, but the colossal expenditure disturbed the commissioners in Whitehall. Gawler was recalled and Captain George Grey sent to South Australia in his place. The 27-year-old Grey initiated a series of cuts, one of his economies being to burden Frome with the extra duties of colonial engineer and the Land Office. With the survey of the limits of settlement complete, Frome made journeys farther afield. Most of his artwork was done on these expeditions; only twelve sketches are known that were made in the vicinity of Adelaide. The rest were drawn on treks in the Lake Alexandrina and Coorong country in 1840 and on two northern expeditions: one in 1842 when he made seventeen known sketches; the other to Mt McKinlay in 1843 from which thirty-one sketches survive. The party that set out in July 1843 included George Charles Hawker and James Henderson and both wrote journal entries of their daily progress, always hampered by shortage of water and the need to shoot animals and birds to supplement rations. Despite such vicissitudes, both Frome and Henderson made sketches of the scenery. One entry in Henderson’s diary reads: 'About nine o’clock it rained hard, and we consequently did not start. It was not, however, a “dies non” with us, as we finished a number of sketches which we had made on our trip.’ Frome’s sketches, many of which he later turned into more finished watercolour paintings, reveal his ability to capture the character of a region and its physical features in a graphic, direct style. While Henderson’s and Hawker’s diary entries complain of the barren desolation of much of the area they traversed, Frome’s paintings show the inherent beauty of this part of the country. Back at Adelaide, Frome’s responsibilities increased with the development of mining as a major industry. He also became involved with public works such as the Adelaide Gaol and the bridges over the Torrens River. In February 1849 he left Adelaide with his wife and family of five children on leave of absence in England and did not return. During the following years he held various official posts, including that of surveyor-general of Mauritius and, after his resignation from the army, lieutenant-governor of Guernsey. He died on 12 February 1890 at Ewell, Surrey. Frome was one of the more skilled amateur artists to use his talent as a useful tool in his career and it is evident that he possessed some training in watercolour technique and an understanding of contemporary aesthetic conventions. His images from inland journeys are a valued legacy to Australia’s exploration art. In 1970 the Art Gallery of South Australia and the Adelaide City Council jointly purchased a collection of his work from the Royal Commonwealth Society, London, comprising 152 pen, pencil and watercolour drawings, some in sketchbooks and some loose, dating from 1839 to 1849, his South Australian years. Two rough pencil plans of the Government Houses in Sydney and Hobart (with brief descriptions) remain in the Royal Commonwealth Society’s Frome Papers. Writers: Staff Writer Date written: 1992 Last updated: 2011

Born

b. 7 January 1802

Summary

A skilled amateur artist, Frome used his talents to create a career as a painter. His works portrayed the country as inherently beautiful and are a valued legacy to Australia's exploration art.

Gender

Male

Died

12 February 1890

Age at death

88