ADELAIDE.- John Glover’s major painting Baptism on the Ouse River by Rev. Henry Dowling, 1838, has been generously donated to the Art Gallery of South Australia by the benefactor Max Carter, AO. Valued at $3.5 million the painting is an exceptional example of the artist’s work and will greatly enhance the Art Gallery’s Australian art collection.

Announced last night, this major gift has been donated through the Art Gallery’s Foundation to mark the establishment of the new Thomas Elder Circle and to acknowledge the legacy of the Gallery’s first major bequest donor, Sir Thomas Elder.

Art Gallery of South Australia, Director, Nick Mitzevich said “This gift signifies the importance of bequests to the Art Gallery of South Australia and will greatly enhance the permanent Australian collection. As one of the Gallery’s most generous donors and as a bequest donor himself, I sincerely thank Max Carter for his incredible generosity to the Gallery, past, present and future.”

Max Carter AO is one of the Art Gallery of South Australia’s greatest living donors. For more than forty years he has been involved in the Gallery, and has built a collection to rival no other. He has generously donated works from this collection to the Gallery over many years, and is extraordinarily altruistic on all Gallery matters.

“It gives me great pleasure to be able to gift Baptism on the Ouse River by Rev. Henry Dowling to the Art Gallery and to the people of South Australia. It is my hope that this gesture will inspire others to emulate the selfless giving by Sir Thomas Elder and all of our wonderful benefactors since,” said Mr Carter.

The Art Gallery of South Australia has the largest and most significant mainland collection of works by John Glover. The Gallery’s holdings encompass thirty three drawings, seven watercolours and eight oils which demonstrate the breadth of the artists British and Australian careers. Baptism on the Ouse River by Rev. Henry Dowling will be on permanent display in Gallery 1 of the ElderWing of Australian Art.