Born in England in 1809, Nicholas and is believed to have trained with English printmaker A.M Huffam. He arrived in Australia in 1836. A draughtsman, lithographer and watercolourist, in the 1830s to the 1850s he specialised in watercolour portraits of Sydney society, and exhibited at the Society for the Promotion of Fine Arts in 1847 and 1849. He also lithographed many drawings for publication, including those in William Baker's Heads of the People (1848) and Profiles of Australian Aborigines(1840).
Our database records art auction sales of works by William Nicholas from 1975 and in total 21 works by the artist have been offered for sale, of which 14 (67%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $68,500 for Portrait of Lady O'Connell sold by Christies in April 1998. No works have been offered for sale this year, and the last sale we have recorded for the artist was in 2023. Works by William Nicholas are held by the National Gallery of Australia, National Portrait Gallery and a further two major public national galleries (see list below).
William Nicholas is listed in the following standard biographical references:
Could the second and subsequent works by this artist sold after June 9, 2010 for over $1,000 be liable for the Artists' Resale Royalty? More info…
No, ineligible. The artist has been deceased for more than 70 years.
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