In 1985, The Chief and Petty Officers'/Warrant Officers' and Sergeants' Mess at Windsor Park sought the perfect gift to honour the retirement of Rear-Admiral Fred Crickard. They found it in their commission to Pat Burstall to paint a portrait of HMCS Sackville, the last corvette surviving from the Second World War. Since the HMCS Sackville commission, Ms. Burstall has become the most prominent painter of Canadian navy ships. In 1989, on the recommendation of its curator, Ms. Marilyn Gurney, the Maritime Command Museum appointed Ms. Burstall as Artist-in-Residence, a position she still holds. When Ms. Burstall began to paint ships in earnest, the sources of her imagination were near at hand. Her father, Douglas Brewer, was a craftsman, a cabinet-maker, and a builder with an acute sense of architectural rightness. He built houses and, in his youth in Newfoundland, he built boats. His daughter has sharp girlhood memories of drawing pictures of boats. Those memories go back to the early 40s, in Halifax. Fascination with line, colour, and form became part of a life. To kindle it into work, encouragement was needed. It came from family friend and artist, Anthony Law. Over the years, Douglas Brewer had built a number of houses in Boulderwood, near Halifax, for former naval personnel like Captain Dick Steele and Commander Anthony Law. When his friend's daughter revealed her interest in painting, Anthony Law dispelled her lack of confidence with a direct look in the eye and a succinct, "You can do it." Anthony Law was Ms. Burstall's principal mentor in the ensuing years. His workshops were supplemented by painting instruction from Jean Edmonds Hancock, John Cook, and Robert Percival and watercolour sessions with Roger Savage and Jane Shaw. Pat Burstall has painted almost exclusively in watercolour since 1985, when injuries from a horse-riding accident made the labours associated with the use of oils impossible. Watercolour is a luminous and subtle medium. Thus the remarkable quality of these ship paintings. They are rendered with grace. Their clear lines, detailed forms, and soft lights are a tribute to the men who served on the ships. Ms. Burstall's work is in many private and public collections. The 24 original watercolours for the suite "Lost in Action" adorn the walls of The McKee Room at Windsor Park in Halifax. The McKee Room is open to viewing by appointment. The Maritime Command Museum has a collection of the prints and a collection of watercolours of military houses on permanent exhibition. Teaching less than in the past, she nevertheless continues the mentoring tradition by leading a fully-subscribed monthly watercolour class. Most recently, in February 2005, Ms. Burstall was honoured by an invitation to join the Canadian Society of Marine Artists, a society dedicated to Canadian artists who have been inspired by Canada's oceans, lakes, ships and those who sail in them. She will be participating in their annual exhibitions held in the society’s Picton, Ontario art gallery.