NORM Quinn is a meticulous painter. Inside his Burwood home, countless frames of marine scenes vie for prime position on his walls.
Quinn’s knack for recreating images of 19th-century ships was recently rewarded when he won the prize for best traditional art at the Maritime Art Show at Mission to Seafarers on Flinders Street for his work Krusenstern
(ex Padua).
MW found out about Quinn’s award from the man himself when he posted us a handwritten note just before Christmas:
‘‘Hey! If you think I’m skiting, you’re right! At my age I’m lucky to be breathing, let alone winning anything!’’ he wrote.
Perhaps he’s right; who needs modesty at the age of 85?
We paid Quinn a visit on a Friday morning.
‘‘Hello, love,’’ he says, wearing a cheeky grin and a sailor’s cap.
A former milkman, cable joiner and driving instructor, Quinn has led a colourful yet calm life with his wife, three children, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
‘‘I’m interested in everything,’’ Quinn says as we pass by two acoustic guitars propped against the wall of his small backroom studio.
He paints in acrylics, using a magnifying glass to get the fine details just right.
“Every ship I paint, the detail is correct: the rigging is correct, the sails are correct. Everything that came to Australia came by sailing ships, they were like floating warehouses.’’
On this particular morning, the retiree is tired from a night spent caring for his wife, who has suffered from dementia for the past few years.
‘‘She had a rough night last night,’’ says Quinn with a hint of exhaustion in his voice.
He’s coping OK, he assures MW, but he says he hasn’t seriously picked up a paintbrush for a few years.
The winning painting was something he dug up from behind his couch and retouched slightly. ‘‘I’m too busy with other things,’’ he says, gesturing to the closed door behind which his wife rests.
Quinn began painting when he was 14. Since then, he has captured more than 100 different ships.
His lengthy obsession with the subject explains the collection of paintings covering the walls of his studio, along with numerous books and photos of ships.
‘‘I was inspired by my father who used to sail around Cape Horn; he was always talking about ships. I started drawing them and then colouring them in. He made this,’’ Quinn says, holding up a tiny wooden ship in a blue glass bottle.
‘‘We lived in Richmond, but his house was burnt out, and many artworks lost. This is one of the things that was salvaged.’’
Despite his obsession, this relatively landlocked aficionado of the seafaring vessel has only been on deck once.
The year was 2006 and the vessel was the beautifully restored 19th-century ship the James Craig.
‘‘It was great, probably one of the best days of my life,’’ Quinn says, adding that he’s looking forward to picking up a paintbrush again soon.
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