Donald Friend was born in Sydney in 1915 and died 1989. He was a student of the Royal Art School and a member of the Sydney Charm School and has been considered one of the finest draftsmen of the human figure that Australia has ever produced.

Much of Friend’s life and career was spent outside Australia, in Nigeria, Italy, Sri Lanka and Bali. A major influence on his life’s work was the period spent in Bali between 1966 and 1979, where he steeped himself in the local culture and played host to an extravagant and hedonistic lifestyle producing a large volume of work that documented this period.

Friend’s work mostly comprises of works on paper using only pen and ink. He did paint with oils at certain periods; however these allow only a fraction of his life’s work. Friend’s artistic style reflected his character, which at times was satirical, erotic and often gregarious.

Besides being known as a painter, illustrator and graphic artist, Friends’ reputation extends to being the author of a several books. The original versions of these manuscripts are now archived in the major museums of Australia and in important private collections.