Stella Cornelius AO OBE (1919–2010), businesswoman and peace activist, was born to Jewish parents in Sydney and grew up moving around New South Wales as her father, a draper and tailor, found work during the Depression. She married a German Jewish furrier, Max Cornelius, in 1943 and together they formed Cornelius Furs, which traded on the corner of King and Castlereagh streets and remained one of Australia's leading luxury retailers for decades. In 1973, Stella founded the Peace and Conflict Resolution Program for the UN Association of Australia. After Max died in 1978, Stella devoted herself to conflict resolution and peace full-time. In 1985 she established a National Consultative Committee on Peace and Disarmament and the following year founded the Conflict Resolution Network. Having helped to establish the Centre for Conflict Resolution that opened at Macquarie University in 1988, Stella received an honorary doctorate from the institution in 1999. In 2000 Nelson Mandela recognised her human rights activism, and in 2005 she was among the 1000 women jointly nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. In 2010 she gained the UNAA International Peace Award.
The portrait was a gift to Cornelius from immediate family for her 70th birthday. During several sittings over the second half of 1989, she and Judy Cassab formed a warm connection as work on the portrait progressed.
Gift of the Cornelius family 2019
© Judy Cassab/Copyright Agency, 2023
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