{{short description|Australian artist}} {{about||the British chemist|Kenneth Henderson Jack}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}} {{Use Australian English|date=July 2011}} '''Kenneth William David Jack''' AM MBE RWS, (5 October 1924 – 10 June 2006) was an Australian watercolour artist who specialised in painting the images of an almost forgotten outback life: old mine workings, ghost towns, decaying farm buildings.
==Family== The son of Harold James Jack (1901–1977), and Ethel Gertrude Jack (1892–1950), née Orr,<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article22909689 Deaths: Jack, ''The Argus'', (Thursday, 14 September 1950), p.17.]</ref> Kenneth William David Jack was born in Malvern on 5 October 1924.<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2049020 Births: Jack, ''The Argus'', (Saturday, 11 October 1924), p.13.]</ref>
His son-in-law Fred Schmidt is also an Australian watercolour artist.
==Artist== He became a professional painter at the age of 39 after giving up his job as senior instructor at the Caulfield Institute of Technology, and continued as a prolific painter until his death on the 10th of June 2006.
==Recognition== * '''1977''': elected to the Royal Watercolour Society. * '''1982''': awarded the MBE: "for service to the arts".<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article126868718 New Years Honours: Victoria: MBE, ''The Canberra Times'', (Thursday, 31 December 1981), p.8.]</ref> * '''1987''': awarded the Order of Australia (AM): "for service to the arts, particularly to watercolour painting".<ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article119477819 Australia Day Honours: Member (AM) General Division, ''The Canberra Times'', (Monday, 26 January 1987), p.6.]</ref>
==The Kenneth Jack Memorial Drawing Award== ''The Kenneth Jack Memorial Drawing Award'' was established in his honour in 2007 by ''The Australian Guild of Realist Artists''. The inaugural winner was Margaret Gurney.<ref>[https://www.agra.org.au/kjam-drawing-prize Kenneth Jack Memorial Drawing Award, ''The Australian Guild of Realist Artists''.]</ref>
==Collections== Kenneth Jack's works can be found in these collections: *Royal Collection at Windsor. *Victoria and Albert museum. *National Gallery of Australia. *The Australian War Memorial *The capital city collections of every Australian state.
==Notes== {{Reflist}}
==References== * [https://nominal-rolls.dva.gov.au/veteran?id=964911&c=WW2 World War Two Nominal Roll: Corporal Kenneth William David Jack (125555), ''Department of Veterans' Affairs''.]
==External links== * [http://www.theage.com.au/news/arts/melbourne-in-a-past-light/2005/06/21/1119321730602.html ''Melbourne Age'' "Melbourne in a past light" 22 June 2005 retrieved 20 June 2006] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070928003720/http://www.australianart.com.au/artists.php?ID=94 Kenneth Jack at Australian Art] * [http://www.kennethjack.com.au Kenneth Jack website] {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jack, Kenneth}} Category:1924 births Category:2006 deaths Category:Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology alumni Category:Members of the Order of Australia Category:Australian Members of the Order of the British Empire Category:20th-century Australian male artists Category:Australian male painters Category:20th-century Australian painters Category:Australian modern painters