Virginia woolf biography of roger fry artist death

Hailed as the father of modern British art for his efforts in promoting post-Impressionism in the UK, Roger Fry enjoyed an illustrious career as an artist and art critic. A new aesthetic was emerging at the beginning of the twentieth century, and, within the Anglophone art scene, Roger Fry was the face of that change. Roger Fry was born on 14 December to wealthy middle-class Quaker parents, Mariabella and Edward Fry, who worked as a judge.

As Fry grew up in a house where art was not especially valued, however, it was by no means clear from his early life that he would go on to pursue the career he did. Edward Fry had a keen interest in science, writing studies on British Mosses in and, later in life, alongside his daughter, Agnes, The Liverworts: British and Foreign in Edward had hoped for a scientific career for himself.

Nonetheless, Roger greatly enjoyed his time as a Cambridge student. While studying Natural Science, he joined a discussion group known as The Apostles and began sketching with greater seriousness than he had been able to during his school days.

He was a painter whose

While he remained a diligent student and would go on to graduate with a first-class degree, his growing interest in art was beginning to eclipse his interest in science. Nonetheless, reassured that he could resume his scientific career if necessary, they ultimately allowed their son to study art, financing his education under Francis Bate at Applegarth Studios in Hammersmith.

His parents also financed his trips abroad to learn more about art, the first of which was to Italy in At this time, Fry favored the work of the Old Masters over that of his own more Impressionistic generation. It was thanks to his clear intelligence and willingness to change his mind, however, that he showed such an aptitude for art criticism, for which he is best known today.

Upon his return to London, he began writing articles on contemporary art for such weekly newspapers as the Athenaeum , the Pilot , and the Fortnightly , in order to support himself, so he believed until his artistic career took off. He also took on lecturing roles, teaching courses on Leonardo da Vinci at Cambridge and Italian art at Eastbourne.

Eventually, he became the chief art critic for the Athenaeum , writing one or two columns per week for the publication.