Painting Vasse River
Water colour painting.
Details
Details
John Flett
John Stanley Flett, a South Australian by birth, joined the RAAF in 1940, his expertise in radar sent him yo sydney and then to Onslow in North West Australia as commanding officer of the wartime radar station there, the apparent imminence of an enemy invasion from the north saw the northern radar stations moved to the south of the state, John Flett was posted to the radar station which was set up on Cape Naturaliste for the rest of the war.
On his leave in Busselton he met his future wife Hilda Pickersgill whom he married in St Mary's Church Busselton. In 1946 the couple moved to Adelaide where he trained in medicine, graduating in 1951.
Dr Flett was a well-known and loved doctor in country areas of South Australia and was also instrumental in saving many children's lives with his research of amoebic meningitis being caused by water from the Murray River. He was made a member of the Order of Australia in 2005 for his work in establishing and running a regional hospital in Wallaroo S.A.
Dr Flett was also an enthusiastic amateur painter and raised many thousands of dollars for children's cancer charities with annual fundraising exhibitions of his paintings.
Dr John Stanley Flett A.M. died in February 2020 aged 99 years, we are privileged to be able to display this painting, which depicts his memories of Busselton during World War 2, and especially his marriage to his life partner, it shows the Vasse River, St Mary's Church an the view up Queen Street at the time.
