Sir Walter Baldwin Spencer 

George Washington Lambert painted this portrait of Sir Walter Baldwin Spencer, though the date it was created is unknown. Lambert was an Australian artist known for his portraits, and Spencer was a biologist and anthropologist, which places this work within the context of early 20th-century Australia, a time marked by both scientific exploration and colonial expansion. This portrait provides us with a glimpse into the representation of intellectual and colonial figures of the time. Spencer, with his coat and distinguished mustache, embodies the image of a respected scientist, yet his work was deeply entangled with the study of Indigenous cultures, often through a lens of colonial power. The painting captures a sense of authority, but it also hints at the complex relationships between knowledge, identity, and the colonial project. What does it mean to capture a man's likeness while eliding the impact of his work on colonized people? The emotional subtext might be found in what isn't shown. We are left to ponder the untold stories and the power dynamics inherent in the act of representation itself.