George Frederick Harris (painter)

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George Frederick Harris
Self Portrait, George Frederick Harris, 1908
Born(1856-10-30)October 30, 1856
Birmingham, West Midlands, UK
DiedJune 14, 1924(1924-06-14) (aged 67)
Sydney, Australia
Nationality (legal)Welsh, Australian
Known forPainting, drawing
SpouseRosetta Elizabeth Harris
RelativesPixie O'Harris (daughter), Rolf Harris (grandson)

George Frederick Harris (30 October 1856 – 14 June 1924) was a Welsh portrait and landscape painter. He was born in Birmingham, West Midlands, UK.[1][2][3] Harris lived in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales for most of his life, before emigrating to Australia in 1920.[4] He died in Sydney, Australia[1][2] of myocarditis and pneumonia.[1]

Marriage[edit]

Harris married Jemima Reid Harris, née Bowmen in Chelmsford, Essex, UK in August 1882.[5] They had two children Claude Harris and Ethel Harris. After Harris divorced with Jemima, he married Rosetta Elizabeth Harris, née Lucas in 1901 and had nine children.[6] Pixie O'Harris, one of his children, was well known as a children's book author and illustrator, and Rolf Harris,[4] an Australian entertainer and painter, was Harris' grandson.

Life[edit]

Harris was a chairman and secretary of the South Wales Art Society,[7] Cadiff, Wales, and had a business of portrait and photography in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales before emigrating to Australia in 1920.[8]

Collections[edit]

The Cyfarthfa Castle Museum & Art Gallery, Merthyr Tydfil is holding the collection of portraits by George Frederick Harris.[8]

Two of G. F. Harris's paintings, dated 1893 and 1896, were auctioned by Bonhams auctioneers in 2005.[4] There are over 40 paintings attributed to Harris now held by public bodies or in public art collections.[9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Birth Certificate text, Harris Family. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  2. ^ a b Rootsweb. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  3. ^ "George Frederick Harris and his family tree". FameChain. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
  4. ^ a b c "Sale of Rolf's grandfather's art", BBC News, 17 June 2005. Retrieved 2013-12-30.
  5. ^ "George Frederick Harris & Jemima Harris Divorced, Children, Joint Family Tree & History - FameChain". www.famechain.com. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  6. ^ "George Frederick Harris & Rosetta Harris Married, Children, Joint Family Tree & History - FameChain". www.famechain.com. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  7. ^ Holden, Robert, "Cultural Advice", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved 2021-05-25
  8. ^ a b "Merthyr Tydfil Museum & Art Gallery | Artist Biographies". www.artbiogs.co.uk. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  9. ^ 43 artworks by or after George Frederick Harris, Art UK. Retrieved 26 May 2015.