1994
In 1994 Australian contemporary artist Sally Smart donated three works from her exhibition Where I come from the birds sing a pretty song, which was held at Geelong Gallery in 1993.
The first work pictured is Study for ‘Hilma’s violets’. Hilma af Klint (1862–1944) was a Swedish artist and mystic who, during seances, produced a series of ‘automatic’ drawings and paintings, to which Smart refers in her painted and collaged work on paper.
The second work, Bird #1 - Working drawing for "Where I come from the birds sing a pretty song", is a surrealist collage melding avian and human forms. The title is a reference to a scene in David Lynch's 1992 television series Twin Peaks.
Study for ‘The Fox sisters’ is a depiction of three sisters from New York who played an important role in the Spiritualist movement. Leah, Margaretta, and Catherine enjoyed careers as mediums for many years until 1888 when they admitted their ‘spirit rappings’ were a hoax.