Frank Henry Algernon Mason
Encyclopedia
Frank Henry Mason RBA
, RI
, RSMA
was an artist best known for his maritime, shipping, coastal and harbour paintings and as a creator of art deco
travel and railway posters. His style is described as a 'light impressionist' and he was a founder member of the Staithes Art Club whose members are known today as the Staithes group
of artists, or the Northern Impressionists.
, Hartlepool
, County Durham
, England
on 1 October 1875 the son of a railway clerk. Frank Mason was educated between 1880 and 1882 as a cadet at the HMS Conway
Naval School at Birkenhead
.
as a marine engineer for steam powered ships working at Hartlepool, Leeds and Scarborough, eventually settling in Scarborough around about 1894.
Frank had been interested in drawing but had no formal training in art. There was however a strong artistic community in Scarborough at the time. Frank studied at the Scarborough School of Art with Albert Strange and made regular trips to Staithes to meet and socialise with the arts community there. By 1890 Frank's work had advanced to the point where he received commissions from art dealers, and around 1898 he decided to quit marine engineering and take up art full-time. In 1901 he became a founder member of the Staithes Art Club.
Frank married his wife Edith in 1899. Frank had lived at Blenheim Terrace in Scarborough but relocated the short distance to lodgings in North Marine Road.
During 1914 - 1918, Frank Mason was appointed shipping war artist in the RNVR as lieutenant in command of a motor launch in the North Sea, and Egypt. The Imperial War Museum
holds 56 of his paintings from this period.
On returning from the war Frank worked with the community at Ebberston Hall near Scarborough and he travelled abroad extensively undertaking an extended European tour. He painted many subjects generally in water colour. During the 1920s and 1930s he designed poster artwork for Great Northern Railway
, Great Western Railway
, London, Midland and Scottish Railway
, North Eastern Railway
, London and North Eastern Railway
, British Rail
and Underground Group railway companies and ocean liner companies.
Frank was elected to the Royal Society of British Artists
in 1904 and elected to the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours
in 1929.
from 1902 onwards. His work has been included in an exhibition in Liverpool and in 1973 there was an exhibition of his work at the National Maritime Museum
. As well as the Imperial War Museum, Frank's work can be found in numerous galleries around the country - at Cartwright Hall
Bradford, in Dundee, Hartlepool, and at Whitby.
Frank wrote the book Ashore and Afloat (1929) about his water colour technique. With Fred Taylor, Frank wrote the book Water Colour Painting.
Royal Society of British Artists
The Royal Society of British Artists is a British art body established in 1823 as the Society of British Artists, as an alternative to the Royal Academy.-History:...
, RI
Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours
The Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours , initially called the New Society of Painters in Water Colours, , is one of the societies in the Federation of British Artists, based in the Mall Galleries in London.-History:In 1831 the society was founded as the New Society of Painters in Water...
, RSMA
Royal Society of Marine Artists
The Royal Society of Marine Artists is an association of artists in London, England, that promotes contemporary marine art. This includes painting, drawing, printmaking and sculpture.-History:...
was an artist best known for his maritime, shipping, coastal and harbour paintings and as a creator of art deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
travel and railway posters. His style is described as a 'light impressionist' and he was a founder member of the Staithes Art Club whose members are known today as the Staithes group
Staithes group
The Staithes group or Staithes School was an art colony of 19th century painters based in the North Yorkshire fishing village of Staithes....
of artists, or the Northern Impressionists.
Early life
Frank Henry Mason was born Frank Henry Algernon Mason in Seaton CarewSeaton Carew
Seaton Carew is a small seaside resort within the Borough of Hartlepool, in North East England with a population of 6,018 . It is situated on the North Sea coast between the town of Hartlepool and the mouth of the River Tees...
, Hartlepool
Hartlepool
Hartlepool is a town and port in North East England.It was founded in the 7th century AD, around the Northumbrian monastery of Hartlepool Abbey. The village grew during the Middle Ages and developed a harbour which served as the official port of the County Palatine of Durham. A railway link from...
, County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
on 1 October 1875 the son of a railway clerk. Frank Mason was educated between 1880 and 1882 as a cadet at the HMS Conway
HMS Conway (school ship)
HMS Conway was a naval training school or "school ship", founded in 1859 and housed for most of its life aboard a 19th-century wooden battleship. The ship was originally stationed on the Mersey near Liverpool, then moved to the Menai Strait during World War II. While being towed back to Birkenhead...
Naval School at Birkenhead
Birkenhead
Birkenhead is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite the city of Liverpool...
.
Career
On leaving HMS Conway, Frank spent time at sea then trained with ParsonsParsons Marine Steam Turbine Company
Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company was a British engineering company based in Wallsend, North England, on the River Tyne.-History:The company was founded by Charles Algernon Parsons in 1897 with £500,000 of capital, and specialised in building the steam turbine engines that he had invented for...
as a marine engineer for steam powered ships working at Hartlepool, Leeds and Scarborough, eventually settling in Scarborough around about 1894.
Frank had been interested in drawing but had no formal training in art. There was however a strong artistic community in Scarborough at the time. Frank studied at the Scarborough School of Art with Albert Strange and made regular trips to Staithes to meet and socialise with the arts community there. By 1890 Frank's work had advanced to the point where he received commissions from art dealers, and around 1898 he decided to quit marine engineering and take up art full-time. In 1901 he became a founder member of the Staithes Art Club.
Frank married his wife Edith in 1899. Frank had lived at Blenheim Terrace in Scarborough but relocated the short distance to lodgings in North Marine Road.
During 1914 - 1918, Frank Mason was appointed shipping war artist in the RNVR as lieutenant in command of a motor launch in the North Sea, and Egypt. The Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
holds 56 of his paintings from this period.
On returning from the war Frank worked with the community at Ebberston Hall near Scarborough and he travelled abroad extensively undertaking an extended European tour. He painted many subjects generally in water colour. During the 1920s and 1930s he designed poster artwork for Great Northern Railway
Great Northern Railway (Great Britain)
The Great Northern Railway was a British railway company established by the Great Northern Railway Act of 1846. On 1 January 1923 the company lost its identity as a constituent of the newly formed London and North Eastern Railway....
, Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
, London, Midland and Scottish Railway
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
, North Eastern Railway
North Eastern Railway (UK)
The North Eastern Railway , was an English railway company. It was incorporated in 1854, when four existing companies were combined, and was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923...
, London and North Eastern Railway
London and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway was the second-largest of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain...
, British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
and Underground Group railway companies and ocean liner companies.
Frank was elected to the Royal Society of British Artists
Royal Society of British Artists
The Royal Society of British Artists is a British art body established in 1823 as the Society of British Artists, as an alternative to the Royal Academy.-History:...
in 1904 and elected to the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours
Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours
The Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours , initially called the New Society of Painters in Water Colours, , is one of the societies in the Federation of British Artists, based in the Mall Galleries in London.-History:In 1831 the society was founded as the New Society of Painters in Water...
in 1929.
Work
Frank Henry Mason had exhibitions of his work at the Royal AcademyRoyal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...
from 1902 onwards. His work has been included in an exhibition in Liverpool and in 1973 there was an exhibition of his work at the National Maritime Museum
National Maritime Museum
The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England is the leading maritime museum of the United Kingdom and may be the largest museum of its kind in the world. The historic buildings forming part of the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site, it also incorporates the Royal Observatory, Greenwich,...
. As well as the Imperial War Museum, Frank's work can be found in numerous galleries around the country - at Cartwright Hall
Cartwright Hall
Cartwright Hall is the civic art gallery in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, situated about a mile from the city centre in the Manningham district....
Bradford, in Dundee, Hartlepool, and at Whitby.
Frank wrote the book Ashore and Afloat (1929) about his water colour technique. With Fred Taylor, Frank wrote the book Water Colour Painting.
Books
Yardley, Edward; The Life and Career of Frank Henry Mason, Hartlepool Museum Services.1996External links
- Biographies: Albert Strange Association, T.B. & R. Jordan,