Zeck paintings

Emil Herman Zeck, born November 1891 in Sydney, showed artistic skills at an early age. In 1908, as a sixteen year old, he was chosen to join the Government Printing Office as a Cadet Art Draftsman - for the princely sum of £75 per year. He went on to become their entomological illustrator but left in 1923 to join the NSW Department of Agriculture's Entomology Branch. Zeck, who had actually been preparing illustrations for that Branch since about 1914, remained there until he retired in 1956.

Although he was a prolific writer, Zeck is probably best remembered for his great skills as an entomological illustrator. He produced more than 2000 insect drawings, many of which were published to illustrate entomological articles in the NSW Agricultural Gazette. Most of his work was in black ink, but he produced a series of fine watercolours, first revealed to a fascinated public as part of the Entomology Branch carriage on the Department's "Better Farming Train" which toured New South Wales in 1927. All of his illustrations are stored in the Agricultural Scientific Collections Unit in Orange, NSW.

Zeck was also highly regarded for his exceptional entomological abilities and he exercised considerable influence on entomology over a wide area. He had a particular interest in aphids. The 1961 award of the Australian Natural History Medallion was a well-deserved if belated tribute to his life's work. Zeck died in 1963.

Note: Use of these images for any purpose without permission of the Curator of
the Entomological Collections constitutes a breach of copyright. Permission can
be requested by contacting the Curator of the Entomological Collections at
ascu@dpi.nsw.gov.au