Louis McCubbin studied at the National Gallery School from 1906 until 1911. In 1916, he enlisted with the 14th Battalion of the AIF and served in France from November 1917 with the 10th Field Ambulance. In 1918 McCubbin became one of five soldiers already serving with the AIF to be appointed an official war artist affiliated with the Australian War Records Section. From 1920 until 1930, he was employed by the Australian War Memorial to paint the backgrounds to the dioramas, and also produced two series of paintings to complement the dioramas.
McCubbin was re-employed by the Memorial from 1935-1936 to undertake commissions for large paintings. These include Peronne, Heavy artillery advancing through the town, 1918 and Sailly-le-Sec, 1918 both depicting war damage on the Western Front. The Australia War Memorial holds almost two hundred paintings and drawings by the artist.
McCubbin was President of the Victorian Artists' Society in the 1930s, and from 1936 until 1950, he was Director of the Art Gallery of South Australia. He was also a member of the Commonwealth Art Advisory Board from 1945, and received an OBE for his services to art in 1947. Son of illustrator Frederick McCubbin (q.v.).
