Cecil John White (1900 – March 1986), known under the pen name 'Unk' White, was an Australian cartoonist born in

Auckland, New Zealand Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

. White came to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

in 1922 with the artists Joe and Guy Lynch and was soon immersed in the bohemian scene there. He was a regular contributor to Australian magazines, notably ''

Melbourne Punch ''Melbourne Punch'' (from 1900, simply titled ''Punch'') was an Australian illustrated magazine founded by Edgar Ray and Frederick Sinnett, and published from August 1855 to December 1925. The magazine was modelled closely on '' Punch'' of Lon ...

'' and '' The Bulletin'', also ''

Smith's Weekly ''Smith's Weekly'' was an Australian tabloid newspaper published from 1919 to 1950. It was an independent weekly published in Sydney, but read all over Australia. History The publication took its name from its founder and chief financer Sir ...

'' and ''Beckett's Budget''. White produced the comic strips, ''Freckles'' in 1928 and ''The Adventures of Blue Hardy'' for ''Pix'' magazine in 1938. He was a foundation member of the Black and White Artists' Club and its first secretary. In 1944 Unk was accredited as an official war artist and saw active service with the

RAAF The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the governor-general of Aus ...

and

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

in New Guinea, the Pacific and Japan. He was also a highly regarded painter in watercolours. From the late 1960s White drew many of the architectural drawings in the Rigby Sketchbook series.

Publications

*''Unk White's Laugh Parade'' Frank Johnson, Sydney 1940 *''Unk White's Second Laugh Parade'' Frank Johnson, Sydney 1940 *''Unk White's Giggles'' Pinnacle Press, Sydney 1943 Illustrations for The Sketchbook Series (published by Rigby Limited, Adelaide) included:Rigby Sketchbooks
hibeach.net. Retrieved 18 December 2024. *''The Rocks, Sydney'' by Olaf Ruhen, 1966 *''Sydney Harbour Sketchbook'' by R. Sriber, 1968 *''Auckland Sketchbook'' by M. H. Holcroft, 1969 *''Norfolk Island Sketchbook'' by R. Sriber, 1969 *''New England Sketchbook'' by

Peter Newell Peter Sheaf Hersey Newell (March 5, 1862 – January 15, 1924) was an American artist and writer. He created picture books and illustrated new editions of many children's books. A native of McDonough County, Illinois, Newell built a reputa ...

, 1970 *''Ballarat and Western Goldfields Sketchbook'' by

John Béchervaise John Mayston Béchervaise (11 May 1910 – 13 July 1998) was an Australian writer, photographer, artist, historian and explorer. He is especially notable for his work and achievements in Antarctica. Career Béchervaise was educated in Melb ...

, 1970 *''Bendigo and Eastern Goldfields Sketchbook'' by John Béchervaise, 1970 *''Hawkesbury River Sketchbook'' by Frank Cayley 1970 *''Blue Mountains Sketchbook'' by John Bechervaise, 1971 *''Nineteenth Century Sydney Sketchbook'' by Tess van Sommers, 1974 *''Paddington Sketchbook'' by Patricia Thompson 1975 *''Queensland Sketchbook'' by Peter Newell, 1976 *''Historic Sydney Sketchbook'' by Olaf Ruhen, Cedric Emanuel, Patricia Thompson, 1977

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:White, Unk New Zealand comics artists Australian comics artists 1900 births 1986 deaths Australian war artists