Draughtsperson, illustrator and painter, active in Brisbane from the 1970s until the 1990s.
In the book A Brush with the Law, Dickason notes that she trained in General Art at Swinburne Technical College, Melbourne before undertaking various drafting positions, including freelance work with the Herald and Weekly Times in Melbourne.1 She later moved to Queensland, and displayed two artworks in the 1975 Royal National Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland Exhibition of Art.
In June 1976, Dickason completed a sketch of American Ambassador to Australia James Hargrove, when the pair met at the opening of the American Bicentennial Arts Festival.2
In the late 1980s Dickason’s profile was boosted by her role as an illustrator of the proceedings of the Fitzgerald Inquiry for Channel Ten. During the eighteen month case, Dickason completed countless sketches of courtroom activities and personalities, as well as cartoons depicting evidence and testimonies of witnesses, over 50 of which were published in the 1988 volume A Brush with the Law, co-produced with Channel Ten reporter John Graham.3
Outside of these activities, Dickason remained a thoroughly democratic artist, completing portraits at the Caloundra Uniting Church arts and crafts exhibition, and displaying work at local exhibitions and competitions.4
1. John Graham (text), Norma Dickason (illustrations) A Brush with the Law, Bowen Hills: Boolarong Press, 1988.
2. Unknown newspaper article, titled 'Portrait of an envoy’, June 1976. Held State Library of Queensland Artist File: Norma Dickason.
3. Sunday Mail Magazine, January 31, 1988, p 6; Sunshine Coast Daily, 10 April 1989
4. The Queensland Times, 1 May 1985; Sunshine Coast Daily, 10 April 1989
- Writers:
-
Timothy Roberts
- Date written:
- 2016
- Last updated:
- 2016
