FRAZER - William Miller Frazer RSA (1864-1961)
Last updated | 25/01/2011
Scone raised artist who holds the record for exhibiting the
most years at the annual Royal Scottish Academy exhibitions
born Scone 30 September 1864
died Edinburgh 7 May 1961
EARLY YEARS
- William was born in 1864 and grew up in Scone
- William attended Perth Academy where he first met his lifelong
friend and patron (Sir) Thomas R Dewar, the whisky
magnate
- William left Perth to attend the Trustees Academy in Edinburgh,
following a distinguished group of earlier Perthshire
artists
ARTISTIC CAREER
- William moved to Edinburgh in 1897/8 and spent the remainder of
his long life in Edinburgh
- William first exhibited at the Royal Scottish Academy
in 1884 when he was living at Bridgend, Perth
- William travelled to Algeria, Holland, Italy and Norway in
1890
- William exhibited at an incredible 78 consecutive
exhibitions held at the RSA between 1884 and 1961
- William was commemorated by a display of 3 of his works
posthumously at the Royal Scottish Academy exhibition in
1962
- William was elected an Associate of the Royal Scottish Academy
(ARSA) in 1909
- William was elected a full Academician (RSA) in 1924
- William was a founder member of the Society of Scottish Artists
in 1891 and served as its President in 1908
WHAT DID HE PAINT?
- William painted landscapes mainly
- William executed some works in watercolour but his favoured
medium was oil paint
- William was particularly drawn to paint in the English Fens,
the Norfolk Broads, Argyllshire and his native Perthshire
- William's style is quite recognizable and is evocative of the
work of the French painter Corot
LATER LIFE
- William was a popular figure in artistic circles
- William never married and remained a bachelor all his life
- William died in 1961 (the same year as
J D Fergusson) aged 97 making him Perthshire's oldest artist to
date
CHECKLIST OF PICTURES BY WILLIAM IN THE COLLECTION OF
PERTH MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY
(It is not possible to have the entire collection on show
at any one time. To view any of these works please
contact the Art Section to make an appointment)
Falkland Palace, watercolour on paper, about 1880-90
A West Coast Fishing Village, oil on canvas, 1892
Landscape with cattle, oil on canvas, 1892
Backwater Kinfauns, oil on canvas, 1895
Annaty Burn, Scone, oil on canvas, 1909
Rush-cutting in the Fens, oil on canvas, 1913
Reeds and Ducks, oil on canvas, 1915
Perth The Fair City : Scotland's Holiday Centre, colour
lithographic print (after an oil painting by W M Frazer), about
1925
Perth from the South, oil on canvas, 1925
Perth from the South, colour mezzotint print on paper, 1925
another copy of the same
A Perthshire Moorland, oil on canvas, about 1925-7
A Moorland in Athole, oil on canvas, not dated
Wareham Mill, Dorset, oil on canvas, not dated
Collecting the Day's Catch, oil on canvas, not dated
The Norfolk Broads, oil on canvas, not dated
WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT WILLIAM MILLER FRAZER?
In 1978 Perth Museum and Art Gallery mounted an exhibition
of loan work to celebrate the life and work of William Miller
Frazer and produced a small catalogue to accompany the show. This
catalogue is no longer in print.
WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OTHER PROMINENT LOCAL
ARTISTS?
Please look at the menu on the left for details of
other Perthshire artists featured in the collection.
