Frederick Morgan

Who was Frederick Morgan?

Frederick Morgan, was an English painter of portraits, animals, domestic and country scenes. He became famous for his idyllic genre scenes of childhood.

Morgan was born in London. He was commonly known as Fred Morgan and was the son of John Morgan, a successful genre artist sometimes known as 'Jury Morgan'.

At the age of fourteen he was taken out of school by his father who then tutored him in art. At the age of 16, while still studying with his father, his first picture, "The Rehearsal", was exhibited at the Royal Academy, and, after a hiatus of several years, his paintings were shown there regularly. For a while he worked as a portrait artist for an Aylesbury photographer, - this training proved to be crucial as it "taught him how to observe closely and to give the greatest attention to detail."

Eventually he turned to other subjects for his art, in particular idyllic genre scenes of country life and childhood. For many years, starting in 1874, Thomas Agnew & Sons purchased all the work he produced. Over this period he painted some of his most popular works such as "The Doll’s Tea Party", "Emigrants' Departure" and "School Belles". Most of his painting was done in the village of Shere close to Guildford, a well-known retreat for artists. He also painted in Normandy, including "Midday Rest" and "An Apple Gathering".