About this work
Thomas Clark trained at the Royal Academy in London and was Director of the Nottingham School of Art before he emigrated to Australia. Clark’s first teaching position in Melbourne was at the Artisans School of Design in Collingwood in 1856. An innovative and progressive educator, he was among those who wrote letters of recommendation to the Victorian government, which led to the foundation of the National Gallery School. He was appointed first Drawing Master in 1870 and held this appointment until he resigned in 1876 due to ill health. His most notable students included Tom Roberts and Frederick McCubbin.