Shearing the Rams

Shearing the Rams
ArtistTom Roberts
Year1890
Mediumoil on canvas on composition board
Dimensions122.4 cm × 183.3 cm (48.2 in × 72.2 in)
LocationNational Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne

Shearing the Rams is an 1890 painting by Australian artist Tom Roberts. It depicts sheep shearers plying their trade in a timber shearing shed. Distinctly Australian in character, the painting is a celebration of pastoral life and work, especially "strong, masculine labour", and recognises the role that the wool industry played in the development of the country.

One of the best-known and most-loved paintings in Australia, Shearing the Rams has been described as a "masterpiece of Australian impressionism" and "the great icon of Australian popular art history".[1][2] It forms part of the National Gallery of Victoria's Australian art collection, held at the Ian Potter Centre in Federation Square, Melbourne.

  1. ^ "Tom Roberts' masterpiece ~ Shearing the Rams 1890". Art Knowledge News. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  2. ^ Nelson, Robert S, Robert S; Shiff, Richard (2003). Critical terms for art history. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. pp. 370–371. ISBN 978-0-226-57168-3.