He studied as a painter, was convicted for printing false bank notes, and was deported from the United Kingdom to Australia during 1846.

While visiting Great Britain in 1845, Bull was caught for having prepared equipment for printing false bank notes.

In a trial at the Central Criminal Court in London during December 1845 he was sentenced to fourteen years deportation to Australia.

During the 1850s he was a teacher at the William Slade Smith Academy, and also painted local landscapes, and is noted for his scenes of early colonial Hobart.

[4] Bull also created historical paintings, such as The Wreck of the George III (1850) which is now displayed in the National Gallery of Australia at Canberra.