Adam Gustavus Ball

Adam Gustavus Ball (1821 - 1882)

Adam Gustavus Ball was born on 7 April 1821 in Dublin, Ireland. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. Early in 1839 he came to Sydney where he practiced his profession of civil engineer for eight years. His job allowed him to travel throughout South Australia recording scenes. . Ball’s lifestyle was bohemian and somewhat nomadic, unlike his elder brother, the Right Honorable J.T. Ball, whose distinguished career included the position of lord chancellor of Ireland. In 1847 Adam Gustavus Ball helped overland a mob of cattle to Adelaide, then remained in South Australia working as a surveyor and taking part in expeditions of exploration. He was known on every outlying sheep and cattle station for his genial disposition and his skill with a pencil. His sketches include incidents such as cattle musters, kangaroo hunts and camp scenes, all executed with verve in a bold, free style. Unfortunately, an accident prevented the continuation of these sorties into the bush. Ball exhibited with the Society of Arts at Adelaide in 1859 and 1860. Many of his sketches were reproduced as photographs by Townsend Duryea and G.J. Freeman in the 1860s and early 1870s and apparently sold well. Numerous originals survive, including at least two large watercolors of a kangaroo hunt (NLA). The Art Gallery of South Australia holds The Cattle Run (1865), Dog Chasing a Kangaroo (1860), and two pencil drawings wryly captioned. Several works by the artist have been sold at auction, including '9 Works: A Collection of Drawing' sold at Lawsons 'Fine Decorative Arts + Jewellery + Fine Art' in 2013 for $12,481. The artist died in 1882 in Adelaide.

Source: Wiki