Harold Freedman (1915–99) was born in Melbourne and educated at Melbourne Technical College. Starting his long career in 1936, he worked in all public arts: portraits, war propaganda, political cartoons, graphic design, advertising, illustration, children’s books and large-scale murals.
Harold Freedman: Artist for the People was at the Art Gallery of Ballarat in 2017. Freedman’s designation as a people’s artist was seen in his democratic teaching style, his well-known murals, and his service as an Official War Artist in WW2. But whereasChristopher Allen (The Australian, May 2017) and blogger Black Mark thought the work was insensitive to modern art styles, Ballarat curator Julie McLaren believed the work was accessible, democratic and full of honour for the WW2 soldiers.
In WW2, Freedman enlisted and became a war artist attached to the Royal Australian Air Force Historical War Records Section. He worked during 1944-5, in Borneo, Noemfoor and around Australia. Freedman and two other Australian artists, Eric Thake and Max Newton, were all appointed to document the RAAF because the Army had previously dominated official art assignments. The more famous artist Sidney Nolan applied to be an official war artist, but was rejected. So he operated as an Unofficial War Artist instead. As did artist Albert Tucker.
Men and Women of Service was a post-war propaganda programme that emphasised those who had worked in the Victorian Railways during the war. Because they had been required to remain working in essential services, these people had truly made an important contribution to the war effort! Freedman made large coloured lithographs that were displayed in Victorian railway stations.
An ABC documentary focused on the immense mural (10m x 40m) documenting the history of transport in Victoria. One could see the work on the mural being completed, with the aid of a team of assistants. The painting studio was soon relocated to an old electricity sub-station where railway carpenters built a massive easel. The mural was planned for a large wall at Spencer St Station, specifically left vacant for this purpose, and was to illustrate all the modes of transport during Victoria’s boom time from 1834 – horses, trains, trams, cars etc. It was unveiled in Jan 1978 with a gala parade of historic vehicles and vintage aircraft.
A large catalogue, written by Gavin Fry, David Freedman (artist’s son) and David Jack (another artist's son), noted Freedman enjoyed the challenge and made it central to his work, rather than seeing it as an irksome task. Freedman made art to entertain & colour the lives of working people.
Harold’s aim was to create a very Australian experience. See the Cavalcade of Transport mural, commissioned by the government for Spencer St railway station concourse. It showed every type of transport used during the first century of Victoria’s European settlement. This massive work was completed by a team of artists in a giant building in Brunswick, during 1973-7. The mural was later removed from Spencer St during the retail development of what is now Southern Cross Station, and only remains on display above shop-fronts in the Direct Factory Outlets. The artist’s public works had been compromised by property development.
The Regional History of Geelong was the first major mosaic mural created in the state studio. Harold created the full-size, colour painted cartoon and his assistants finished the mosaics, in total taking 2.5 years to complete. It can be seen today in the Geelong Art Gallery.
In WW2, Freedman enlisted and became a war artist attached to the Royal Australian Air Force Historical War Records Section. He worked during 1944-5, in Borneo, Noemfoor and around Australia. Freedman and two other Australian artists, Eric Thake and Max Newton, were all appointed to document the RAAF because the Army had previously dominated official art assignments. The more famous artist Sidney Nolan applied to be an official war artist, but was rejected. So he operated as an Unofficial War Artist instead. As did artist Albert Tucker.
Men of Service: The Welder,
1947, 100 x 62 cm,
National Gallery Aus, Canberra
Men of Service: Signal Man, 
1947, 100 x 62 cm,
National Gallery Aus, Canberra
Freedman honoured a group who felt under-valued by the public - he portrayed these men and women as noble and dignified. Each image comprised of layers and layers of colour, as in magazines. His work was well represented in galleries, including The War Memorial in Canberra where his official portraits sustained the glamour surrounding the WW2 air force (handsome men in smart uniforms etc). His portraits were sometimes moody eg Wing Commander Clive Caldwall (1944) but always showed intelligent seriousness.
And see Freedman’s portrait of Victoria Cross winner, Pilot Officer Rawdon Middleton. After his cock-pit was fired on over Italy, Middleton flew his damaged bomber over the Channel to allow his crew to safely bail out close to Britain. Middleton tragically died.
His portraits eg Alan Marshall (1943) and The Signal Man (1947) demonstrated great ability, works clearly influenced by Australian black and white illustrators Norman and Lionel Lindsay. These qualities become even more apparent in painted portraits eg a member of the Women’s Auxiliary Australian Air Force, which was reproduced in the Royal Australian Air Force’s wartime publications.
Freedman honoured a group who felt under-valued by the public - he portrayed these men and women as noble and dignified. Each image comprised of layers and layers of colour, as in magazines. His work was well represented in galleries, including The War Memorial in Canberra where his official portraits sustained the glamour surrounding the WW2 air force (handsome men in smart uniforms etc). His portraits were sometimes moody eg Wing Commander Clive Caldwall (1944) but always showed intelligent seriousness.
And see Freedman’s portrait of Victoria Cross winner, Pilot Officer Rawdon Middleton. After his cock-pit was fired on over Italy, Middleton flew his damaged bomber over the Channel to allow his crew to safely bail out close to Britain. Middleton tragically died.
His portraits eg Alan Marshall (1943) and The Signal Man (1947) demonstrated great ability, works clearly influenced by Australian black and white illustrators Norman and Lionel Lindsay. These qualities become even more apparent in painted portraits eg a member of the Women’s Auxiliary Australian Air Force, which was reproduced in the Royal Australian Air Force’s wartime publications.
Men and Women of Service was a post-war propaganda programme that emphasised those who had worked in the Victorian Railways during the war. Because they had been required to remain working in essential services, these people had truly made an important contribution to the war effort! Freedman made large coloured lithographs that were displayed in Victorian railway stations.
Once again each figure was designed as socialist realist type. The stationmaster was stout and paternal, the signalman lean and anxious. The medium and scale of lithography seem to make the features coarser than they would appear in painting. But did they produce an effect that was readily recognised and much loved, OR profoundly cliched?
Post-war, Freedman taught at the Technical College/RMIT, creating bold, colour-blocked posters. In 1951 his workshop for printmaking was established at the College, but open for artists from the National Gallery School as well. Fred Williams, Charles Blackman, Kenneth Jack and Leonard French were the enthusiastic participants who began exhibiting together in 1954. By 1960, Freedman arranged after-hours classes and brought the supplies. The Melbourne Print Group formed the foundation for printmaking in the city’s art and technical colleges for many years.
1946, 70 x 55 cm,
Aus War Memorial, Canberra
Murals The last third of the Ballarat exhibition was devoted to Freedman’s murals, beginning in the late 60s. His first large (4.5 x 60 ms) painted mural was commissioned by the Australian War Memorial. This meticulously researched work marked the 50th anniversary of the RAAF and formed a backdrop for the war memorial’s RAAF section.
Aus War Memorial, Canberra
Murals The last third of the Ballarat exhibition was devoted to Freedman’s murals, beginning in the late 60s. His first large (4.5 x 60 ms) painted mural was commissioned by the Australian War Memorial. This meticulously researched work marked the 50th anniversary of the RAAF and formed a backdrop for the war memorial’s RAAF section.
An ABC documentary focused on the immense mural (10m x 40m) documenting the history of transport in Victoria. One could see the work on the mural being completed, with the aid of a team of assistants. The painting studio was soon relocated to an old electricity sub-station where railway carpenters built a massive easel. The mural was planned for a large wall at Spencer St Station, specifically left vacant for this purpose, and was to illustrate all the modes of transport during Victoria’s boom time from 1834 – horses, trains, trams, cars etc. It was unveiled in Jan 1978 with a gala parade of historic vehicles and vintage aircraft.
A large catalogue, written by Gavin Fry, David Freedman (artist’s son) and David Jack (another artist's son), noted Freedman enjoyed the challenge and made it central to his work, rather than seeing it as an irksome task. Freedman made art to entertain & colour the lives of working people.
Harold produced a series of paintings on the History of Flight for Tullamarine’s new international terminal, opened in 1971. Freedman was the first and only person to ever serve as Victoria’s State Artist, appointed in 1972. Alas the History of Flight later ended up into storage.
Shop between 'off peak',
1950s, railway lithograph, 97 x 60 cm
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
Harold’s aim was to create a very Australian experience. See the Cavalcade of Transport mural, commissioned by the government for Spencer St railway station concourse. It showed every type of transport used during the first century of Victoria’s European settlement. This massive work was completed by a team of artists in a giant building in Brunswick, during 1973-7. The mural was later removed from Spencer St during the retail development of what is now Southern Cross Station, and only remains on display above shop-fronts in the Direct Factory Outlets. The artist’s public works had been compromised by property development.
The Regional History of Geelong was the first major mosaic mural created in the state studio. Harold created the full-size, colour painted cartoon and his assistants finished the mosaics, in total taking 2.5 years to complete. It can be seen today in the Geelong Art Gallery.
on the wall of the Eastern Hill Fire Brigade, Melbourne
Credit: Harold Freedman Tribute
mosaic football mural
Waverley Park football ground, 1986
Credit: Harold Freedman Tribute
The Legend of Fire mosaic covers the wall of the Eastern Hill Fire Brigade’s headquarters and museum in Albert St East Melbourne. The colour cartoon was created in small and then manually enlarged to the installation size, five ambitious storeys high.
Harold next prepared vast murals for the Victorian Racing Club. The new Hill Stand at the Flemington Race-course was chosen to display the History of Australian Thoroughbred Racing. Midway into the project the newly elected conservative government made a change in arts policy and the studio suddenly became a private enterprise. At the invitation of the VCR chairman, artists collaborated on horses in Freedman's murals, completed in 1988.
Meanwhile Harold negotiated with the Victorian Football League to start a project celebrating the human form and football. His mural and the assistants’ mosaics were installed at the Waverley Park football ground in 1986. He was awarded the Order of Australia in 1989.
Credit: Harold Freedman Tribute
mosaic football mural
Waverley Park football ground, 1986
Credit: Harold Freedman Tribute
The Legend of Fire mosaic covers the wall of the Eastern Hill Fire Brigade’s headquarters and museum in Albert St East Melbourne. The colour cartoon was created in small and then manually enlarged to the installation size, five ambitious storeys high.
Harold next prepared vast murals for the Victorian Racing Club. The new Hill Stand at the Flemington Race-course was chosen to display the History of Australian Thoroughbred Racing. Midway into the project the newly elected conservative government made a change in arts policy and the studio suddenly became a private enterprise. At the invitation of the VCR chairman, artists collaborated on horses in Freedman's murals, completed in 1988.
Meanwhile Harold negotiated with the Victorian Football League to start a project celebrating the human form and football. His mural and the assistants’ mosaics were installed at the Waverley Park football ground in 1986. He was awarded the Order of Australia in 1989.