Ralph Trafford Walker b. 1912 Sydney, NSW

  • Artist (Sculptor) , (Printmaker)
Sculptor and printmaker, designed 16 of the 18 relief panels for one of the main Mitchell Library bronze doors, appointed an official war artist with the Australian War Memorial in 1944, designed visual material for ABC television productions in the 1960s.
Talk | Version history | Updated Oct. 19, 2011 | Created Jan. 1, 1996
Name
Ralph Trafford Walker
Birth date
1912
Birth place
Sydney, NSW
Gender
Male
Roles
  • Artist (Sculptor)
  • Artist (Printmaker)
Residence
  • Brisbane, QLD
  • c.1937- c.1965 Sydney, NSW
Other Occupation
  • official war artist
Active Period
  • c.1937- c.1965
Languages
  • English
Training
  • 1937- 1941 Julian Ashton School, Sydney, NSW
  • Royal Art Society School, Sydney, NSW
  • East Sydney Technical College, Sydney, NSW
  • Brisbane Technical College, QLD
Is Indigenous
No
Initial Record Data Source
  • Black and white artists

sculptor and printmaker, was born in Sydney on January 7, 1912. Studied at Brisbane Tech with L.J. Harvey, at East Sydney Technical College under Rayner Hoff, at the Royal Art Society School under Datillo Rubbo and Sydney Long and from 1937 to 1941 under Henry Gibbons at the Julian Ashton School. Walker designed 16 of the 18 relief panels for one of the main Mitchell Library bronze doors. In 1944 he was appointed an official war artist with the Australian War Memorial and created three dioramas ( Weewak , Artillery Hill, Bougainville 1944 and Bacon Hill New Britain 1945 ), eight drawings and eight sculptores for the museum. In the late 1930s he made linocuts, most given away to friends. He married artist and teacher Edith Jean Brown in 1947. In the 1960s Walker designed visual material for ABC television productions at its Gore Hill studios. The National Gallery of Australia has 10, including first state (1936) and second state (1937) of (Man with a Jackhammer) , a strong abstract composition (latter ill. Lebovic & Warner, Fifty Years , cat.87).

This entry is a stub. You can help DAAO by submitting a biography.

Writers:
Staff Writer
Date written:
1996
Last updated:
2007
associate of
L. J. Harvey
1871
Artist (Carver), Artist (Ceramist), Artist (Sculptor)
associate of
Rayner Hoff
1894
Artist (Sculptor)
associate of
Sydney Long
1871
Artist (Painter), Artist (Printmaker)
associate of
Henry Gibbons
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
associate of
Datillo Rubbo
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
spouse of
Edith Jean Brown
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
associate of
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
associate of
Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW, Sydney, NSW
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
associate of
Australian War Memorial, Canberra, ACT
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
16 of the 18 relief panels for one of the main Mitchell Library bronze doors
Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales, Sydney
Bacon Hill New Britain 1945
Date
1945
Australian War Memorial - diorama
Bougainville
Date
1944
Australian War Memorial - diorama
Weewak, Artillery Hill
Date
1944
Australian War Memorial - diorama
Man with a Jackhammer
Date
1936- 1937
Collections
Ralph Trafford Walker: a retrospective
2001
Exhibition (exhibited at)
Manly Art Gallery & Museum, Manly, Sydney, NSW
Citations:
  • Scarlett, Ken, (1980), Australian sculptors, (Place: West Melbourne, Vic : Nelson)
  • McCulloch, Alan, (1984), Encyclopedia of Australian Art, (Place: Hutchinson of Australia, Hawthorn, VIC)
  • Lebovic & Warner, Fifty Years, (Place: Paddington, Sydney, NSW : Josef Lebovic Gallery, cat.87)
  • Kenyon, Therese, (2001), Ralph Trafford Walker: a retrospective, (Place: Manly Art Gallery & Museum exhibition catalogue)