Castle Hill, Townsville, from the North Shore 1945

During World War Two, William Bustard was engaged with the 3rd Battalion Volunteer Defence Corps from 1942 to 1944. When he was posted to Townsville in 1943, he worked as a camouflage officer at the RAAF Base in Garbutt and free weekends provided him with the opportunity to paint. This watercolour was painted to the north of the city, probably from what is now the beachside suburb of Pallarenda. It is dated 1945, a year after the artist’s discharge from the army, and suggests he developed the sketch subsequently or, perhaps, on another trip to north Queensland. It is one of Bustard’s most high-keyed and light-filled works.