History of Cycloramas

The 360° circular panoramic painting was invented in Edinburgh in 1787 and the first painting exhibited in this new style depicted a view of that city. By the 1800’s many more paintings of this type had been completed and they became popular public attractions. Hundreds of them were exhibited throughout the world in purpose built circular buildings.

Known as panoramas in Europe and cycloramas in America, these were all large artworks painted on canvas in a realistic style which depicted scenes in true perspective. The idea was to give the viewer the impression that they were witnessing the scenes in front of them. The subjects were often panoramic landscapes of cities, battle scenes, or religious themes. Many of the paintings were transported to different cities and countries where they were exhibited to wider audiences, mostly through Europe and America. In the late 1800’s Australia had cycloramas in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, unfortunately none of those remain today.

By the 1900’s cinema had become the popular new attraction and many panoramic paintings were no longer open for public exhibition. Fortunately a number of the paintings from those days have survived and are still exhibited throughout the northern hemisphere. The 360° style of painting, now over 200 years old, has recently experienced a resurgence of popularity, with many new paintings being completed throughout the world in the last 10 to 20 years. The total number of cyclorama/panorama paintings on exhibition is now around 60 with new works opening every year.

Cyclorama/panoramas have been created in Australia in more recent years and can be found in Hawker, South Australia and in Broken Hill and Glenbrook in New South Wales.

An International Panorama Society has been formed and holds an annual conference. Their website www.panoramacouncil.org lists panoramas and cycloramas throughout the world.