Important colonial Art In The Colony Of New South Wales
Paintings, Water Colours, Drawings, Etchings, Lithographs
1. First Government House - Sydney - Circa 1807 - John Eyre - WaterColour ((ML SV/31))
John Eyre -
John Eyre Was Born in Coventry, Warwickshire, England. When He Was 13 He Was Apprenticed To his Father Who Was A Wool Comber & Weaver, & Became A Coventry Freeman In August 1792.
On 23rd March 1799, John Eyre Was Sentanced To Transportation For 7 Years For Housebreaking, And He Finally Reached The Colony Of Sydney In The Transport Called "Canada" In December 1801.
He Was Granted A Conditional Pardon On 4th June 1804, & A Month Later He Advertised That He Would Buy A Box Of Watercolours. His First Drawings Were Done Around 1807.
Eyre Seemed To Make Fairly Reasonable Living In The New Colony. In 1811 He Was Engaged To Paint Numbers On All The Buildings On The Eastern Side Of The Tank Stream At A Sixpence A Time, And In February 1812 He Received 12 Pounds For Painting The Constable Staffs Office.
The Records Give No Real Clues To Eyre's Character. Nothing Is Known Of Him After He Left Sydney. He Was Essnetially A Topographical illustrator, And His Work Was Very Competant, And Done With Precision
2. A West View Of Sydney In New South Wales (Detail) - Circa 1809 - John Eyre (Attrib) - Watercolour - ((DL Pg50))
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2. William Bligh - 20th november 1805 - Henry Ashton Barker - Pencil Drawing ((ML MIN 351))
