Background
Born in 1817 and raised in Dublin, Ireland, George Victor Du Noyer, he was the son of Louis Victor Du Noyer (1782–1868) and Margaret Du Bédat (1794–1876), both of Huguenot descent.
Born in 1817 and raised in Dublin, Ireland, George Victor Du Noyer, he was the son of Louis Victor Du Noyer (1782–1868) and Margaret Du Bédat (1794–1876), both of Huguenot descent.
As an artist, his favourite medium was watercolour, but a large number of sketches by him in pencil and other mediums also survive. He was a gifted and extremely prolific artist. Most of his work relates exclusively to Ireland.
Much of this work took place during his time with the Irish Ordnance Survey and particularly the Geological Survey of Ireland.
In 1834 he was employed by the Civilian Department of the Irish Ordnance Survey. He remained there for a number of years – during a period when Ireland was being mapped by the Ordnance Survey for the first time.
In October 1848, he became a Temporary Assistant Geologist with the Geological Survey of Ireland. In April 1849, he became an Assistant Geologist with the Survey.
In April 1867, Du Noyer became the Geological Survey of Ireland"s first District Surveyor and moved to Carrigfergus, Company
Du Noyer"s art includes works on plants, animals, fish, fossils, geology, maps, landscapes, people, country houses, historic buildings and antiquities, as well as on other subjects. One of his best and most famous works is Killiney Head looking towards Bray, Company Wicklow, 1866, a landscape in watercolour.
When compared with this part of County Dublin today, a remarkable change is noticeable – with what was in Du Noyer"s time a rural area having since become part of the city of Dublin.
Most of his best work is in the collections of the Geological Survey of Ireland, the Royal Irish Academy, the National Museum of Ireland, the National Botanic Gardens. and the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. However, his work is also located elsewhere and some is in private collections.
Note that prints of his most famous geological sketches can be viewed and purchased at the offices of the Geological Survey of Ireland.
He became a member of the "Geological Society of Dublin" on 20 November 1843. Du Noyer was a member of the Royal Irish Academy. He was also a member of a number of societies associated with his various fields of interest.