Thornhill Cooper was a Christchurch based photographer and painter. He was born Doncaster, England, and visitied Victoria, Australia 1860-61, after which he returned to England. After visiting Canada and the United States he returned to New Zealand and by 1875 had set up a photography business in Christchurch. but sold the business the next year and announced a photographic tour of Canterbury. In 1880 he became a marine average adjuster and accountant in Wellington and then moved back to Christchurch in 1884. During his time in Christchurch his great hobby had been painting in watercolours and he had made pen and wash drawings of West Coast scenes. He became student at Canterbury School of Art in 1886. Thornhill Cooper exhibited with Canterbury Society of Arts (CSA) regularly between 1884-94. In the New Zealand & South Seas Exhibition in Dunedin 1889-90 he exhibited South Island scenes and one Indian subject. His work was included in Canterbury Retrospective Exhibition in 1951.
In our database, 12 works by Thornhill Cooper are listed as being offered for sale, the earliest in 1995, of which 6 (50%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $1,396 for Hagley Park, Christchurch - (pair) sold by International Art Centre in December 2004. No works have been offered for sale this year, and the last sale we have recorded for the artist was in 2009. Works by Thornhill Cooper are held by the Museum Of New Zealand.
Thornhill Cooper is listed in the following standard biographical references:
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