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Donald Friend was a remarkable man – a prolific observer of life who captured what he saw not only as an artist but as a draughtsman, printmaker, writer and cartoonist. He was appreciated for his intelligence, inventiveness, wit, flair for bold colour and brilliant design, and his ability to portray the human form, in particular the male figure, in an almost calligraphic line.
His stint as official Australian War Artist gave Australian art the benefit of his gift of incisive and acute observation.
Donald Friend was born in 1915 in Sydney and was brought up on his family’s property in north-western NSW. He trained as an artist in Sydney and London, but his sense of adventure saw him working in many places, particularly exotic locations such as Africa, Sri Lanka and Bali. He immersed himself in local culture and tradition, the sensuality of the places firing his imagination.
He was based in Bali for years, not only turning out oils, watercolours and prints, but acting as a developer and businessman, buying bronzes and cloth until 1980 when he returned to Sydney and began a period of prolific artistic endeavour.
Friend’s art is hung in all the major Australian galleries and in many private and corporate collections. He was also an accomplished writer, publishing short stories, articles and cartoons. The National Library in Canberra possesses a list of his diaries and jottings, which consist of more than 1,000,000 words and 500 drawings and sketches. He was a great chronicler of his time and his journals document Australian culture from the 1930s through to the 1980s.
Donald Friend died in Sydney in 1989, leaving an extraordinary legacy in images and words.
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