wife, founder, Woman of Action

Mr David Kyle Director of Admissions and Advancement

Last year’s Founders’ Day was a particularly special occasion, marked by the unveiling of a portrait of one of our founders, Mrs Jane Alexander.

The painting, titled ‘Jane Alexander 1853 –1956; Mother, wife, founder, Woman of Action’, was a gift of the Old Scotch Collegians who commissioned local artist, Melissa Clements and unveiled it at a special event, prior to the annual Founders’ Day Dinner.

Melissa graduated from UWA in 2022 and has already built an extraordinary exhibition history, including being a semi-finalist or finalist for the prestigious Lester Prize in 2017 / 2019 / 2020 / 2021, a 2022 finalist in the Darling Prize at the National Portrait Gallery, and a finalist in Australia’s most prestigious prize in 2023, The Archibald. When the College sought to engage an artist to create such an important portrait, it was Melissa’s commissioning to paint Western Australia’s current Chief Justice, Peter Quinlan, that caught our eye. This spectacular piece which hangs in the Supreme Court contains significant symbolism, much like what we wanted from a painting of Jane Alexander.

During Melissa’s time working on the project, she painted in the foyer of Collegians’ House, and students and visitors watched her bring Jane Alexander to life in the room where the portrait now hangs. Whilst under development, the portrait also travelled to the 2023 College Art Exhibition, where her story was shared and warmly embraced by the boys and families who attended. Melissa’s speech at the Founders’ Day assembly was perfectly pitched to our Senior School students. Melissa said, “stories like Jane’s are absolutely timeless, because the attitude that drove her choice to donate the 500 pounds is a feeling as relevant now as it was when she donated more than 125 years ago. It teaches us lessons that life’s decisions should be made with conviction and to do the right thing, no matter how difficult that might be.”

A significant reason for the success of this project was Melissa’s engagement with her subject and the Scotch community more widely. “I was drawn to Jane’s sense of courage, determination, bravery, faith, and love for her family. These are values and attitudes that transcend time.” Through art we can reconnect closely with the past and honour the stories that shape our communities. In this case, Melissa included books from our archives, including the College’s first prospectus, symbols of the Presbyterian Church and the College’s Cameron of Erracht tartan.

Accompanying the portrait, hanging above the fireplace in the foyer of Collegians’ House, are the first two paragraphs of our school’s history, published in 1996 by local historian and UWA Emiritus Professor, Jenny Gregory.

“Scotch College owes its foundation to a conversation at a dinner party in 1896. At that dinner party were the Hon. William Alexander,

Member of the Legislative Council of Western Australia, and his wife, Jane. The conversation turned to education, and they, as Presbyterians and the parents of a twelve year old boy, bemoaned the absence of a Presbyterian school for boys in Perth.

Mrs Jane Alexander was a most devout Presbyterian and, within the constraints that being a good wife and mother implied in the late nineteenth century, a woman of action … It was she who called on the Rev. David Ross (the minister representing the Presbyterian Church in Western Australia) the day after that dinner party. As he recalled later, ‘I can well remember the morning when Mrs Alexander came to me and offered £500 to commence Scotch College’. She announced its establishment publicly just before Christmas 1896.”

The portrait not only commemorates the generosity of the foundation gift of Mrs Jane Alexander, but recognises the driving force, energy, support, and action of all the women in the history of our school.

Vision without action is a dream and Jane Alexander was certainly a woman of action.