The College is the custodian of two extraordinary paintings, which were both gifted to it in the late 1970s. The Council Minutes of 1978 record that 'Queensland Port' by Sidney Nolan, was donated by Dr. (Annie) Mildred Mocatta, and in October 1979, the renowned Australian landscape artist Lloyd Rees presented his painting entitled 'Boats in the Bay (Lane Cove River)' to the College.

How did the College come to be the fortunate custodian of these works?

Dr. Mocatta was an avid art collector and patron, having been passionate about art from an early age. Born in Sydney in 1887, Mocatta attended Woodstock, a private girl's school in North Sydney, that inspired students with the importance of service to others, and offered a full complement of subjects, including languages, science and sport: “I was trained to learn. I was expected to do something”. After studying and working as a kindergarten teacher, Mocatta decided that medical science could provide further understanding of early childhood. She studied first-year science subjects at the University of Western Australia, and the following year transferred to the medical faculty at the University of Melbourne (MB, BS, 1922). After working as a Junior Medical Officer at Adelaide Parkside Mental Hospital on graduation, Mocatta resigned to set up private practice in 1925. In addition to practicing medicine until 1961, she lived an unconventional, highly sociable life, being a fixture on the Adelaide cultural scene for many years. Dr. Mocatta began to disperse her collection after she developed glaucoma in 1963, as this had precluded her enjoyment of it. The College was a beneficiary of this unfortunate circumstance.

Upon receiving acknowledgement of the gift, she wrote to the College that “I think you give me too much credit for the gift I am making to the College – it gives me the greatest pleasure to do this and I have always hoped that one day the Australian College will be able to walk pari pasu with its London progenitor” (of which she was a member).

In 1975, the archives record that Honorary Secretary, Dr. Richard Mulhearn, wrote to Lloyd Rees requesting the possibility of the loan of “one of your paintings appropriate to the building…because I am aware of your personal interest in the national heritage and of your remarkable capacity to portray Australian history by the expression of your artistic talents.” However, the correspondence that I have read, unfortunately, does not indicate why Rees decided to gift his painting to the College, but simply records that the painting had been received. Dr. Mulhearn responded to Rees that “we have great pride in our historic home which will always be an elegant landmark in Macquarie St, Sydney. The building has acquired an additional warmth by your kind action.”

Rees was one of Australia's pre-eminent landscape painters. He fell in love with Sydney Harbour and spent many years painting it from his home in Northwood:

I don't want to go to heaven because it can't be as beautiful as this.

--Lloyd Rees on Sydney Harbour

The paintings have been recently reframed and protected with UV sensitive glass and now reside on permanent display in the Fellows and Edward Ford Rooms on the ground floor of 145 Macquarie St. Sydney. The College invites all Fellows and trainees to view them on visiting the College.