John Thomas Rigby (9 December 1922 – 18 October 2012) was an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal A ...

artist known for his tropical and bush landscapes, genre and portraits. Rigby was born in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

with most of his schooling in one-teacher country schools in the Palen Creek and Glass House Mountains areas where his father worked in saw mills. It was while living adjacent to the Glass House Mountains that he began to show an interest in art. By 1937, he had enrolled in art at the

Brisbane Central Technical College Brisbane Central Technical College is a heritage-listed technical college at 2 George Street, Brisbane City, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1911 to 1956. It became the Queensland Institute of Technology (QIT) in 1 ...

and towards the end of that year, he was accepted into classes conducted by Brisbane artist

Caroline Barker Caroline Barker (born 1981) is a British sports journalist and broadcaster who works in television and radio. She currently presents mainly for BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC World Service, Sky Sports and Premier League Productions. Barker was the fir ...

. In the late 1930s, Rigby began work with a sign-writing company and then with an advertising agency. In March 1942, he enlisted with the Australian Military Forces serving with the 101 Australian Anti-Tank Regiment (later renamed the 101 Australian Tank Attack Attack Regiment) and then 1st Australian Army Intelligence. He served in Australia, New Guinea and New Britain before leaving the Army in September 1946 and commencing freelance commercial art and producing cartoon strips for The Sunday Mail in Brisbane. Between 1948 and 1950, Rigby undertook a Diploma in Fine Art at the East Sydney Technical College during which time he and fellow art student

Jon Molvig Helge Jon Molvig (27 May 1923 – 15 May 1970) was an Australian expressionist artist, considered a major developer of 20th-century Australian expressionism, even though his career 'only' lasted 20 years. He was born in the Newcastle, New South ...

became close friends. He returned to Brisbane and commercial art as well as conducting art classes and having his first solo art exhibition at the

Johnstone Gallery The Johnstone Gallery was a private gallery located in the suburb of Bowen Hills in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia co-owned by Brian Johnstone and his wife, Marjorie Johnstone (née Mant). It was the leading Brisbane commercial gallery exhibitin ...

in 1954. Rigby won the Italian Government Travelling Art Prize in 1955 and travelled to Italy for nearly a year and then spent part of 1957 in Britain before returning to Australia in early 1958. Later that year, he won the '' Women's Weekly'' Art Prize for Portraits, Australia's richest art prize at the time. He subsequently won many other prizes including the

Sulman Prize The Sir John Sulman Prize is one of Australia's longest-running art prizes, having been established in 1936. It is now held concurrently with the Archibald Prize, Australia's best-known art prize, and also with the Wynne Prize, at the Art Galler ...

for 1962. During his career, he had 24 portraits selected for hanging in the

Archibald Prize The Archibald Prize is an Australian portraiture art prize for painting, generally seen as the most prestigious portrait prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after the receipt of a bequest from J. F. Archibald, the editor ...

, 24 in the

Wynne Prize The Wynne Prize is an Australian landscape painting or figure sculpture art prize. As one of Australia's longest-running art prizes, it was established in 1897 from the bequest of Richard Wynne. Now held concurrently with the Sir John Sulman Prize ...

and 21 in the

. He was commissioned for various portraits, including Chancellors of universities. John Rigby was a Trustee of the

Queensland Art Gallery The Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) is an art museum located in South Bank, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The gallery is part of QAGOMA. It complements the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) building, situated only away. The Queensland Art Galler ...

from 1969 to 1987 and Officer-in-Charge of Fine Art at the

Queensland College of Art The Queensland College of Art (QCA) is a specialist arts and design college located in South Bank, Brisbane, and Southport on the Gold Coast of Queensland in Australia. Founded in 1881, the college is the oldest arts institution in Australia. ...

between 1974 and 1984. He received an honorary doctorate from

Griffith University Griffith University is a public research university in South East Queensland on the east coast of Australia. Formally founded in 1971, Griffith opened its doors in 1975, introducing Australia's first degrees in environmental science and Asian ...

in 1994 for services to the arts and was made an honorary member of the

Royal Queensland Art Society The Royal Queensland Art Society is an organisation for practicing artists and those who appreciate art in Queensland, Australia. It is the oldest art society in Queensland. History A meeting was held in the Brisbane School of Arts on Thursday ...

in 2001 and a Companion of the Queensland Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2003. He was the subject of a comprehensive book "John Rigby: Art and Life" launched by the Queensland Art Gallery in 2003. In 2004, the

Museum of Brisbane Museum of Brisbane (MoB) explores contemporary and historic Brisbane, Australia, and its people through a program of art and social history exhibitions, workshops, talks, tours and children's activities. Located on Level 3, of Brisbane City Hall ...

held a special survey of his portraits spanning some 50 years.

References

External links

The Art of John RigbyJohn Rigby Art
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rigby, John 1922 births 2012 deaths Australian landscape painters Australian portrait painters People from Brisbane Australian Army personnel of World War II