Francis Henry Critchley Hinder (26 June 1906 – 31 December 1992) was an Australian painter, sculptor and art teacher who is also known for his

camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the ...

designs in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Education

Born on 26 June 1906 at Summer Hill, Sydney, Hinder was the fourth child of Dr. Henry Vincent Critchley Hinder (1865 - 1913), a prominent surgeon, and Enid Marguerite (née Pockley). He was born at the family home, a grand Italianate Victorian mansion named "Carleton", in

Summer Hill, New South Wales Summer Hill is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Summer Hill is located 7 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the Inner West Council. Summer Hill is a primari ...

. He attended his father's alma mater,

Newington College , motto_translation = To Faith Add Knowledge , location = Inner West and Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map = A ...

(1916–1918), and then completed his education at

Sydney Church of England Grammar School , motto_translation = , established = , type = Independent single-sex and co-educational early learning, primary and secondary day and boarding school , grades = Early learning ...

, when his widowed mother, who had remarried, moved to the North Shore. As an art student he was tutored by Antonio Dattilo Rubbo at the

Royal Art Society of New South Wales The Royal Art Society of New South Wales, or Royal Art Society of NSW, was established in 1880 as the Art Society of New South Wales by a group of artists including Arthur and George Collingridge, with the aim of creating an Australian school of p ...

and at the

East Sydney Technical College The National Art School (NAS) is a tertiary level art school, located in , an inner-city suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The school is an independent accredited higher education provider offering specialised study in studio arts p ...

. Rubbo had also been his art master at Newington. While travelling he pursued his training at the

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

, New York School of Fine and Applied Art and at the

Taos Taos or TAOS may refer to: Places * Taos, Missouri, a city in Cole County, Missouri, United States * Taos County, New Mexico, United States ** Taos, New Mexico, a city, the county seat of Taos County, New Mexico *** Taos art colony, an art colo ...

summer school.

Early career

In the mid-1930s he worked as a commercial artist in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and taught at the Child-Walker School of Fine Art,

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. On 17 May 1930 he married artist Margel Harris at the registry office in Wellesly, Massachusetts. They both returned to Sydney in August 1934, working in theatre design, advertising and graphic art.

World War II

Hinder was a lieutenant (1941–43) in the

Citizen Military Forces The Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citizens Forces, the Citizen ...

(CMF). Working with Professor William Dakin, a Sydney University zoologist, and the civilian Sydney Camouflage Group, Hinder was seconded to the Camouflage Wing of the

Royal Australian Engineers The Royal Australian Engineers (RAE) is the military engineering corps of the Australian Army (although the word corps does not appear in their name or on their badge). The RAE is ranked fourth in seniority of the corps of the Australian Army, be ...

(1942–44) during

where he designed the ''Hinder Spider'', a garnished conical frame for concealing a man, and dummy aircraft such as the ''Hindup''. His wife Margel assisted his work by making scale wooden models.

Postwar career

After the war Hinder took a teaching position at the

and then became head of the Art Department of Sydney Teachers' College (now part of the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

) from 1958 to 1964. In 1952 he was awarded the

Blake Prize for Religious Art The Blake Prize, formerly the Blake Prize for Religious Art, is an List of Australian art awards, Australian art prize awarded for art that explores spirituality. Since the inaugural prize in 1951, the prize was awarded annually from 1951 to 2 ...

for his painting ''Flight into Egypt''. As an artist he is best known for his abstract paintings, yet he also produced work across a diverse range of materials, including drawings and electric-light sculptures. He was a trustee of the

Art Gallery of New South Wales The Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW), founded as the New South Wales Academy of Art in 1872 and known as the National Art Gallery of New South Wales between 1883 and 1958, is located in The Domain, Sydney, Australia. It is the most importa ...

and appointed as a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

. His work is held in many publics galleries including the Art Gallery of New South Wales, the

Art Gallery of South Australia The Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA), established as the National Gallery of South Australia in 1881, is located in Adelaide. It is the most significant visual arts museum in the Australian state of South Australia. It has a collection of ...

, the

Australian National Gallery The National Gallery of Australia (NGA), formerly the Australian National Gallery, is the national art museum of Australia as well as one of the largest art museums in Australia, holding more than 166,000 works of art. Located in Canberra in th ...

, the

Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in wars involving the Commonwealth of Australia and some conflicts involving pe ...

and the

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum. The NGV houses an encyclopedic art collection across two ...

. Frank Hinder died aged 86 on 31 December 1992 at

Killara, New South Wales Killara is a suburb on the North Shore (Sydney), Upper North Shore of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia north-west of the Sydney Central Business District in the Local government areas of New South Wales, local government area ...

. nb. Shared bio. page with Henry Francis Critchley Hinder (1906–1992)

References

External links

Frank Hinder
at the

Art Nomad: Francis (Frank) H. C. Hinder

Frank Hinder: Official website of the estate, all artworks
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hinder, Frank People educated at Newington College People educated at Sydney Church of England Grammar School 1906 births 1992 deaths Members of the Order of Australia 20th-century Australian painters 20th-century Australian male artists Blake Prize for Religious Art winners Australian male painters