James Alfred Turner (J. A. Turner, 1850–1908) was an Australian painter. Turner recorded in painstaking detail the life and daily pursuits of the small rural settler in the mountain ranges to the north and north east of Melbourne, the capital of the State of Victoria, Australia. At the time this was “battlers country”, life was hard and pleasures simple.

Photography was alive and well in Turners time, yet no camera could have captured the spirit of an age and lifestyle like he did. He painted in great detail and his pictures provide vibrant studies of daily life. He should be studied and valued for this skill alone. This was his great unrecognised contribution to Australian art.
Turner was quite prolific and his style instantly ...