Donald Hamilton Fraser British, 1929-2009
Summer On the Scottish Isles
Oil on Paper
42.5 x 61 cms / 16¾ x 24 inches
Signed 'Fraser' (lower left)
Description
Fraser was born in London to Scottish parents. His father was an antiques dealer, and Fraser’s childhood was spent surrounded by beautiful objects and art. Fraser developed a keen interest in literature, reading voraciously and writing poetry, and he began to train as a journalist with Kemsley Newspapers before completing a period of national service in the Royal Air Force in the late 1940s.
Fraser studied at the prestigious St. Martin's School of Art from 1949 to 1952 alongside notable contemporaries including Jack Smith, Leon Kossoff, Frank Auerbach and his close friend Peter Kinley. From 1958 to 1983, Fraser taught at the Royal College of Art, one day a week. During this fellowship, he taught many notable young artists that would go on to be leading figures of their generation, including David Hockney, Ronald Brooks Kitaj, Patrick Caulfield and Thesese Oulton. Fraser became a Fellow of the Royal College of Art in 1970 and was elected as a member of the Royal Academy in 1975. Since this time Fraser undertook work for various committees and organisations connected with art and artists such as the Artists' General Benevolent Institution from 1981 to 1987 and in 1986 he was elected as Vice President of the Royal Overseas League and a member of the Royal Fine Art Commission.