WHITE, UNK (1900-1986)

"Standing Nude" (c.1940)
pencil on paper
35 x 20cm
signed lower right
*private collection, Sydney
 
Cecil 'Unk' White was a prominent NZ-born Australian Illustrator. Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Unk came to Sydney in 1922 with the artists Joe and Guy Lynch. He became a well-known member of the bohemian art scene, and contributed regularly to magazines like the Melbourne Punch, The Bulletin, Smith's Weekly and Beckett's Budget. He is the creator of the comic strips 'Freckles' (1928) and 'The Adventures of Blue Hardy' (for Pix magazine, 1938). He also made features like 'Don Taylor & Wix', 'Dr. Evil', 'Blue Hardy' and 'Lost Country' for the often one-shot comic books published by Frank Johnson Publications in the 1940s. By 1944, he became an official war artist and served in the RAAF and Royal Navy in New Guinea, the Pacific and Japan. He was also famous for his watercolor paintings. He also published a number of collaborative, illustrated books of Sydney suburbs, landmarks & landscapes, which were widely distributed. His works are represented in numerous important Institutions, including the State Library of NSW.