'Rockton, one of Ipswich's historic homes and listed with the National Trust, was also home for many years to one of south-east Queensland's most prolific writers and poets. A true artist, Helen Haenke devoted much of her life to the vibrant cultural creative scene of the 1960s and 1970s - opening her home to contemporaries such as Rodney Hall, Thomas Shapcott, Bruce Dawe and Oodgeroo Noonuccal. A one-time student of highly controversial artist Max Meldrum, Haenke also trained as a graphic artist and continued to paint throughout her life.
'Helen Haenke at Rockton is a visual celebration of the life of this respected artist and author, offering a selection of her finest artworks, poems, fiction and letters, and documenting her valuable contribution to Queensland cultural history.' (Publication summary)
'This book introduces us to a little known artist, playwright and poet who began her career as a commercial artist in Sydney and who settled into a creative life in Ipswich in the 1950s and 1960s. This beautifully produced volume has been compiled and edited by Joanne Holliman from the archive at the Fryer Library. It has been organised around the successive stages of Helen’s artistic development and is replete with photographs, colour plates and other illustrations that show how rich and various Helen’s creative life was.' (Introduction)
'The life of Helen Haenke highlights the vitality and value of regional arts and their crucial interconnections with place.'
'This book introduces us to a little known artist, playwright and poet who began her career as a commercial artist in Sydney and who settled into a creative life in Ipswich in the 1950s and 1960s. This beautifully produced volume has been compiled and edited by Joanne Holliman from the archive at the Fryer Library. It has been organised around the successive stages of Helen’s artistic development and is replete with photographs, colour plates and other illustrations that show how rich and various Helen’s creative life was.' (Introduction)
'The life of Helen Haenke highlights the vitality and value of regional arts and their crucial interconnections with place.'
