ABSTRACT
May’s arrival in Australia may have been the leap of faith that he needed in his career or the change of climate and friends that he needed in his lifestyle. Fellow artists at home may have felt that it was a very bad move. A.S. Hartrick (who did not yet know the Mays) reflected the views of many of his colleagues:
Australia of that period knew little and cared less about art ... J.P. Russell, my Australian friend in Paris, told me that there was no appreciation of painting there, for its inhabitants were at that stage of culture when thirty shillings would be considered a good price for a portrait; therefore he decided not to return to his native land, but abide in France.1
