Charles Decimus Barraud

Charles Decimus Barraud (1822-1897), the 10th child (of 12) of William Francis Barraud and his wife, Sophia Hull, migrated to New Zealand in 1849. Barraud established himself as a chemist, with a shop in Lambton Quay. Meanwhile he also pursued his interest in painting. He was an enthusiastic amateur, and among his French Huguenot ancestors were many artists and craftsmen. Three of his brothers were artists (two had had formal training and exhibited at the Royal Academy) and they probably influenced their younger brother.

Barraud won early recognition as an artist in New Zealand, and his paintings from 1850 onwards are of considerable historical value. He worked mostly in watercolours but also produced a few oils. He was a founder and later president of the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts. Barraud's work reached a wide audience with the reproduction in 1877 of thirty paintings in his book New Zealand: Graphic and Descriptive.