Morton Andrew Edwards
Born 1834
Died 1917
Active: 1852 - 1872
Country of birth: England
Country of death: United States
Sculptor
Born in London. Studied under William Behnes c1852-54 and for a short time in Rome under John Gibson c.1859.
His career was slow to take off and he was declared bankrupt several times in the late 1850s. However having secured a commission for busts of the Prince of Wales and Lord Palmerston in the early to mid-1860s he achieved some success. He was involved with the Royal Society of Arts and an active member of the masons (late 1860s-early 1870s). The latter association seems to have particularly assisted his career.
In 1879 he published a guide to modelling 'A guide to modelling in clay and wax for terra cotta, bronze etc... made easy for beginners' with the artist's materials suppliers, Lechertier, Barbe & Co. for whom he also designed a set of tools and studio equipment.
Towards the end of the century Edwards emigrated to the USA and died in San Francisco.
(Account partly based on British Library 19th Century Newspapers)
Exhibitions, Meetings, Awards and other Events
Exhibited at The Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts (Summer Exhibition), 1768-
1864 - 1870
Exhibited 5 times, one work each time, all portrait busts apart from 'The Bather' (cat. no. 1174) in 1868 which is described as a chromoglyph.
Institutional and Business Connections
Worked with Art Union of London
1864 (Circa) - 1866 (Circa)
To reproduce bust of 'HRH Prince of Wales' in parian ware (issued first in 1864, further editions in 1865 and 1866)
Descriptions of Practice
Listed under Sculptors Post Office London Directory, 1860 Post Office/Kelly London Directories
p. 1803
Occupation given in Census Returns of England and Wales, 1861
'Sculptor'
Sources
Census Returns of England and Wales, 1861
2004
Class: RG9; Piece: 42; Folio: 61; Page: 18; GSU roll: 542562
Post Office London Directory, 1860 Post Office/Kelly London Directories
1860
p. 1803
Citing this record
'Morton Andrew Edwards', Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851-1951, University of Glasgow History of Art and HATII, online database 2011 [http://sculpture.gla.ac.uk/view/person.php?id=ann_1278090058, accessed 26 Mar 2023]
