Artwork Information

William Brown (c 1840-1922)

William Brown was a noted photographer who originally had moved from Auckland in 1865 to start this photography studio in Nelson. Brown specialised in studio portraits (around 6,000 of these were taken during 1865-1892), including the very popular carte de visite. He also took scenic and event photographs including The Nelson Provincial Museum's earliest image of an immigrant ship, the Adamant in 1874, showing fifty immigrants on deck. An excellent record keeper and portrait specialist Brown is the only early Nelson photographer who consistently recorded client and date details, making positive identification possible. He retired from photography in the early 1890s and acquired a sheep station in the Tasman, west of Nelson. He died in Nelson in June 1922.