This website provides a snapshot of the career of John Frith. Following an introduction, the site looks at his career, presenting selected works from his time with The Bulletin (1929-1944), The Sydney Morning Herald (1945-1950) and The Herald (1951-1969). After his retirement, Frith continued to produce cartoons and caricatures of prominent Australians, and a selection of these can be seen in the Retirement section.
A loving family man, Frith also produced illustrated nursery rhymes and alphabets for his grandchildren. One of these, The Adventures of Tubby and Chubby, is reproduced in the Kid’s Gallery.
In July 2001, Old Parliament House launched the exhibition, A Brush With Politics: The Life and Work of John Frith. The exhibition presented works spanning the long career of cartoonist John Frith - from his first known published cartoon in 1929, to the works he undertook during his retirement from 1969 until his death in 2000.
The exhibition included 48 original works, 78 reproductions and 14 original three-dimensional objects.
The success and wide appeal of the exhibition has prompted Old Parliament House to develop the show as a travelling exhibition, taking it to other venues throughout Australia with the assistance of a Federal Government Visions of Australia grant.
The exhibition will visit the following centres from March 2005 to April 2006:
As John Frith developed his own style, he incorporated a number of recurring elements into his cartoons.
The most prominent of these were ‘John Cit.’ and ‘The Bird.’ John Citizen, a caricature of Frith himself, represented the ‘average family man’ who was often on the receiving end of political policy and upheaval. Learn more…
This website is based on the exhibition, A Brush With Politics, shown at the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House in 2001.
More information is available on the exhibitions page.