User:Hacknsplat/Frank McNamara

Frank McNamara, OAM (born in 1916 in Perth, Western Australia) was an Australian watercolour painter.

Early life and career
Frank McNamara was born in 1916 in Perth, Western Australia. In 1919, he moved with his parents to Newcastle, New South Wales, where his mother's family were partners in the foundry and engineering firm, Morison and Bearby.

In 1931, when he was aged 15, the Newcastle City Council bought his watercolour The old candlenut tree, which now belongs to the Newcastle Regional Art Gallery.

He enrolled as a part-time student at the Newcastle Technical College.

After returning from service in New Guinea with the Australian Army, McNamara ...

Life member of the Australian Watercolour Institute.

Military service
Frank McNamara joined the Army in 1941, and was posted to the Intelligence Section of a unit then stationed at Armidale, New South Wales. It was at this time that he met his future wife, Susan Skinner. In 1942 his unit was transferred to Victoria, however McNamara was sent to the Army Intelligence Training School at Cowra, New South Wales. He was subsequently appointed an instructor in Map Reading and Field Sketching at the School of Military Intelligence at Southport, Queensland. In October 1944, he was sent to New Guinea. He returned from New Guinea in May 1945, and was discharged in November of that year.

While in the Army, McNamara was awarded first prize in the War on Land section of the Australia at War Exhibition, as well as first prize for the best watercolour, and third prize for the most outstanding painting irrespective of medium. The Australian War Memorial has a collection of his war-time work.

Later life
In 1993, after a sketching trip to Lake Wyangala, Frank was taken ill and his health deteriorated from then until his death in June 1995.

Honours
Frank McNamara was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia in 1995 shortly before his death for service to art, particularly as a watercolour artist.