Introduction

Conrad Martens was the only major colonial artist to work for a considerable period of time in Queensland - he spent over four months in the south-east region of the future state between November 1851 and March 1852. During this journey Martens completed over ninety drawings which form a valuable topographical record of Queensland only ten years after free settlement. Many sketches are dated and titled, and provide an accurate account of the land in the days preceding outdoor photography; some buildings depicted in the works are still standing and it is possible to compare views of the areas then and now, which demonstrate the effects of land clearing and cultivation. Upon his return to Sydney, Martens completed around seventy commissions for watercolours, working from sketches completed in the field.