German refugee, who became Australian army artist, on show in Victorian museum

Ernest Marcuse’s works are to hang in the Burke museum in Beechworth, a testament to his unlikely career as an artist for the Australian Army

UNLIKE THE MANY thousands of migrants who passed through the gates of the Bonegilla Migrant Centre outside Wodonga seeking a new life, Marcuse found himself there as an employee.

And it was during this time he captured many of the landscapes his work is known for.

Marcuse, who died in 1985, has works in the National Gallery of Victoria and the Australian War Museum and soon, 25 pieces will hang in the Burke Museum in Beechworth.

His son Peter Marcuse said his father had shown artistic ability from a very early age, and he still has pieces his father painted when he was in his teens.

"He studied art at two well-known establishments in Berlin and became a newspaper artist," Peter said.

FULL STORY From Hitler's Berlin to Beechworth, Ernest Marcuse's works to hang in Burke Museum (ABC)

Photo: Marcuse worked at the Bonegilla Migrant Centre for about a year and during that time painted landscapes of north east Victoria (Supplied by Peter Marcuse)