Thomas Bock
Thomas Bock (1790–1855) was an English-born artist who became one of Australia’s first professional painters and a pioneer in early photography. Born in Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire, he trained as an engraver and miniature painter and won a silver medal in 1817 for a portrait engraving in London. In 1823 he was convicted of administering drugs to his mistress and was transported to Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania). He arrived in 1824 and soon worked on banknote plates and portraits, including engravings for Hobart Town Almanacks.
After earning his freedom, Bock established himself as a professional artist in Hobart and became well known for his portraits of colonists. He also painted Tasmanian Aboriginal people at the request of Lady Jane Franklin. His first studio was in Lower Liverpool Street, later moving to 22 Campbell Street, where he painted most of his portraits. He visited Sydney in 1843 and took part in Hobart’s first major art exhibition in 1845. Bock worked in oils, watercolors, and crayons, and he was one of Australia’s earliest photographers. By 1843 he was making daguerreotypes in Hobart, and by 1849 he advertised portrait daguerreotypes from his Campbell Street studio.
Thomas Bock died in Hobart on 19 March 1855, aged 65. He left behind a large body of work, much of which was later lost or unidentified. He is remembered as a highly skilled early convict artist and a pioneer of photography in the colony, famous for his portraits and for experimenting with daguerreotype photography, including some of the colony’s first nude studies.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 19:28 (CET).