A portrait of the sculptor Margel Hinder and her cat Tarquin, by Frank Hinder, created in 1945. Pen, ink and pencil on off-white paper, mounted and framed in wood. The image measures 28 cm in height and 25 cm wide.

Margel and Tarquin are depicted with minimal flowing lines of black ink. The brush marks are a contrast between sweeping dynamic bold wet lines and more textured dry strokes. Her full-length figure is shown seated at an angle, left arm turned toward us as she sits cross-legged in an armchair.

Margel’s hair is concealed by a cap or headwrap with a curled fringe poking out and covering her forehead. Her face is tilted away from us, her gaze is downcast, focusing on a book in her lap. Loose lines of ink detail glasses, disguising her eyes. She has a strong pointed nose and full mouth. She sits at ease, her left arm propped on the armchair with her chin nestled in her left hand, her thumb reaching up to caress her cheek.

Her body is draped in a loose garment with an open cardigan that flows down over her crossed legs, right knee resting over the left. She wears narrow fitted trousers, and her feet are covered in flat shoes.

A line angles across the lower third of the page, indicating a floor and a corner of a room with no other details of the space. Tarquin, her cat, sits at her feet. Its front legs are extended with its head curled up into its stomach, actively grooming.

The artist Frank Hinder has written Margel + Tarquin, Canberra, in the lower right corner in pencil in cursive letters.

Written and voiced by Alana Sivell, 2021