MAHONY, Francis Prout (1862-1916)

generally known as Frank Mahony

artist

was born at Melbourne on 4 December 1862. He was taken to Sydney when 10 years old and studied at the Academy of Art. His work was accepted by the Bulletin and he became known for his excellent drawings of horses. In 1889 his oil painting "Rounding up a Straggler", was bought for the national gallery of New South Wales, and in 1896 "The Cry of the Mothers" was also purchased. He did a good deal of illustrative work for the Picturesque Atlas of Australia, Victoria and its Metropolis, the Antipodean and other magazines of the period, and was also responsible for some of the illustrations to Boake's (q.v.) Where the Dead Men Lie. He left for England in 1904 but his health became impaired and he had little success in England as an artist. Nothing appears to be known about his later days. He died in London in June 1916. He was a capable painter of animals, and is represented in the Sydney, Hobart and Wanganui, New Zealand, galleries.

W. Moore, The Story of Australian Art; P. S. Cleary, Australia's Debt to Irish Nation Builders; The Bulletin, 24 and 31 August 1916.