POWERHOUSE COLLECTION

Photograph from wedding of Mary Hewitt and Henry Quinn

Object No. 87/941

This photograph of the bride, groom and wedding guests is an excellent example of pictorial material relating to Australian weddings at the turn of the century. The composition provides insight into the significance placed upon marriage at the of the turn of the 20th century and reveals much about clothing worn for special occasions at this time. The bride, groom and guests are wearing formal attire, the men in dark suits and the women in floor length dresses and large, highly decorated hats. The male children are wearing sailor suits, showing that children's special occasion dressing was influenced strongly by European trends. Sailor suits for children were popularised by the British Royal family and the Imperial family of Russia. The formality of the extravagant clothing worn by the wedding guests is juxtaposed to the haphazard, closely confined constructions in the backgound. The photograph is somewhat unusual in that it is taken outdoors, possibly at the location of the wedding reception, when it was more common for wedding photographs to be taken in a studio. The serious expressions and formal positioning of guests, who are in rows, indicate that having a photograph taken was a serious and infrequent undertaking, as photographs were taken only on special occasions.