Myra Felton

Myra Felton
Myra Felton
Born	15 April 1835
Died	1920 ; Paddington
Occupations	Painter, photographer

Myra Felton (1835–1920) was an Australian photographer and oil painter, and one of the first independent professional women photographers in colonial Australia. She garnered recognition during her lifetime for her artistic talents, contributions to art education, and involvement in exhibitions.

Early life

Myra Felton was born on April 15, 1835, Liverpool, England, as the second daughter of Amelia and Dr. Maurice Felton (1805-1842). She arrived in Sydney at four years of age on 27 September 1839, aboard the Royal Admiral, alongside her parents, unmarried aunt, brother Maurice, and two sisters, Louisa and Ellisara.

Her father, Maurice Felton was a surgeon and also a talented oil painter. His portrait of Conrad Martens is in the collection of the State Library of New South Wales, while other works are held in the Art Gallery of New South Wales, National Gallery of Australia and National Portrait Gallery.

After her father's death in 1842, Myra Felton worked as a photographic artist, colouring photographs for studios in Sydney. She studied under Marshall Claxton, while he was in Sydney between 1850 and 1854, and she may have learned oil painting from James Armstrong Wilson.

Career

Portrait of a young girl with scotch terrier by Myra Felton

Felton quickly became proficient in photography and oil painting. She specialised in portraiture, particularly colouring over photographs in oils as well as painting originals in pastel and oils. In January 1859, she opened her own studio, Miss M. Felton's Photographic Gallery, in the family home on Hunter Street in Sydney. She moved her studio and gallery several times in and around the city during her lifetime. The establishment of an independent studio made Felton one of the first independent professional women photographers in colonial Australia.

By 1867 she was advertising her services in newspapers as an "Artist and Portrait Painter in dry colours".

In addition to her artistic practice, Myra Felton founded an Art Academy in Sydney, where she taught painting and drawing. By 1869 she was teaching privately, and was also employed as a drawing and art teacher in schools.

She exhibited her works in various exhibitions throughout her career, gaining recognition and praise from art critics and the public alike and was an active member of the New South Wales Academy of Art.

Beyond visual arts, Felton authored a somewhat-romanticised semi-autobiographical novel published in 1887 with proceeds going to the Queens Fund for "distressed women".

Later life and legacy

Felton continued her artistic endeavours but largely disappears from public life around 1888. Her work is held in several national collections in Australia.

She resided primarily in Paddington, New South Wales, until her death on 13 July 1920.

Well known works of Myra Felton include:

pastel portrait of William Pitt Faithfull which is in the collection of the National Library of Australia.
portraits of Alice Gibson and Mary Faithfull (and other members of the Faithfull family) are in the collection of the National Museum of Australia.
oil portrait of Samuel Wensley Blackall, Governor of Queensland, was painted on commission for the Legislative Assembly Chambers of Queensland Parliament House.
portrait of actor, Gustavus Vaughan Brooke
portrait of Dr. John Woolley in red robes of office

Exhibitions

1866 - Intercolonial Exhibition of Australasia, Melbourne, 1866–67
1869 - Agricultural Society of New South Wales Metropolitan Intercolonial Exhibition
1870 - Agricultural Society of N.S.W. Exhibition
1872 - New South Wales Academy of Art
1893 - World's Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893. New South Wales Courts

Publications

Felton, Myra (1887), Eena Romney, or, Word-pictures of home life in New South Wales, Holmes, retrieved 13 May 2025

References

1 2 "Family Notices". The Daily Telegraph. No. 12847. New South Wales, Australia. 14 July 1920. p. 8. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
1 2 "Myra Felton Britain, Australia, 1865-1920". Australian Art Sales Digest.
↑ "Maurice Appleby Felton". Australian Medical Pioneers Index. 14 February 2013. Archived from the original on 2 June 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
↑ "Maurice Felton, b. 1803". National Portrait Gallery people. Archived from the original on 24 April 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
↑ "Dictionary of Australian Biography Ma-Mo". gutenberg.net.au. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
↑ "COLONIAL PARLIAMENT". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. XL, no. 6465. New South Wales, Australia. 25 February 1859. p. 4. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
1 2 3 4 "Myra Felton Biography". Design and Art Australia Online. Archived from the original on 2 June 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
↑ "Advertising". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. XL, no. 6425. New South Wales, Australia. 8 January 1859. p. 12. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "FELTON, MYRA". Photoria. Archived from the original on 2 June 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
↑ "Advertising". Sydney Mail. Vol. VIII, no. 388. New South Wales, Australia. 7 December 1867. p. 1. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ {{Citation | author1=Greville, Edward. | title=Art Academy, | journal=The Year-book of Australia. | year= | section=v. : maps; 21 cm. | issue=(1885) | location=London : Sydney | publisher=Kegan, Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co., Ltd.; Year-Book of Australia and Publishing Co | url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-2940522607 | id=nla.obj-2940522607 | access-date=13 May 2025 | via=Trove }}
↑ "Advertising". The Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser. Vol. XXVIII, no. 991. New South Wales, Australia. 5 July 1879. p. 1. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "Advertising". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. LX, no. 9741. New South Wales, Australia. 11 August 1869. p. 1. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "COLONIAL EXTRACTS". Clarence and Richmond Examiner and New England Advertiser. Vol. VII, no. 362. New South Wales, Australia. 12 June 1866. p. 3 (Edition 2). Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "FROM 10TH TO 17TH MARCH". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. LXIII, no. 10, 247. New South Wales, Australia. 24 March 1871. p. 5. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "ACADEMY OF ART". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 13, 307. New South Wales, Australia. 24 November 1880. p. 7. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "THE ACADEMY OF ART". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. LXX, no. 11, 367. New South Wales, Australia. 23 October 1874. p. 6. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "NEW PUBLICATIONS". The Daily Telegraph. No. 2579. New South Wales, Australia. 22 October 1887. p. 9. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ Myra Felton (1867), Portrait of Mary Faithfull, by Myra Felton, 1867, archived from the original on 2 June 2025, retrieved 13 May 2025
↑ Myra Felton (1860), Portrait of Alice Gibson, by Myra Felton, 1860s, archived from the original on 2 June 2025, retrieved 13 May 2025
↑ Felton, Myra (1868), Painting of His Excellency Colonel Samuel Wensley Blackall - Govenor [sic] Of Queensland 1868-1871, retrieved 13 May 2025
↑ "Recent Acquisitions By Queensland National Art Gallery". The Telegraph. Queensland, Australia. 22 July 1938. p. 9 (CITY FINAL LAST MINUTE NEWS). Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "GENERAL INTELLIGENCE". The Queanbeyan Age. Vol. VII, no. 299. New South Wales, Australia. 7 June 1866. p. 3. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
↑ "Myra Felton (Artist) - Art Index". DX Lab | State Library of NSW. Archived from the original on 2 June 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.

[:0-1] 1 2 "Family Notices". The Daily Telegraph. No. 12847. New South Wales, Australia. 14 July 1920. p. 8. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[:1-2] 1 2 "Myra Felton Britain, Australia, 1865-1920". Australian Art Sales Digest.

[3] "Maurice Appleby Felton". Australian Medical Pioneers Index. 14 February 2013. Archived from the original on 2 June 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.

[4] "Maurice Felton, b. 1803". National Portrait Gallery people. Archived from the original on 24 April 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.

[5] "Dictionary of Australian Biography Ma-Mo". gutenberg.net.au. Retrieved 13 May 2025.

[6] "COLONIAL PARLIAMENT". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. XL, no. 6465. New South Wales, Australia. 25 February 1859. p. 4. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[:2-7] 1 2 3 4 "Myra Felton Biography". Design and Art Australia Online. Archived from the original on 2 June 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.

[8] "Advertising". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. XL, no. 6425. New South Wales, Australia. 8 January 1859. p. 12. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[9] "FELTON, MYRA". Photoria. Archived from the original on 2 June 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.

[10] "Advertising". Sydney Mail. Vol. VIII, no. 388. New South Wales, Australia. 7 December 1867. p. 1. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[11] {{Citation | author1=Greville, Edward. | title=Art Academy, | journal=The Year-book of Australia. | year= | section=v. : maps; 21 cm. | issue=(1885) | location=London : Sydney | publisher=Kegan, Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co., Ltd.; Year-Book of Australia and Publishing Co | url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-2940522607 | id=nla.obj-2940522607 | access-date=13 May 2025 | via=Trove }}

[12] "Advertising". The Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser. Vol. XXVIII, no. 991. New South Wales, Australia. 5 July 1879. p. 1. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[13] "Advertising". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. LX, no. 9741. New South Wales, Australia. 11 August 1869. p. 1. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[14] "COLONIAL EXTRACTS". Clarence and Richmond Examiner and New England Advertiser. Vol. VII, no. 362. New South Wales, Australia. 12 June 1866. p. 3 (Edition 2). Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[15] "FROM 10TH TO 17TH MARCH". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. LXIII, no. 10, 247. New South Wales, Australia. 24 March 1871. p. 5. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[16] "ACADEMY OF ART". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 13, 307. New South Wales, Australia. 24 November 1880. p. 7. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[17] "THE ACADEMY OF ART". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. LXX, no. 11, 367. New South Wales, Australia. 23 October 1874. p. 6. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[18] "NEW PUBLICATIONS". The Daily Telegraph. No. 2579. New South Wales, Australia. 22 October 1887. p. 9. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[19] Myra Felton (1867), Portrait of Mary Faithfull, by Myra Felton, 1867, archived from the original on 2 June 2025, retrieved 13 May 2025

[20] Myra Felton (1860), Portrait of Alice Gibson, by Myra Felton, 1860s, archived from the original on 2 June 2025, retrieved 13 May 2025

[21] Felton, Myra (1868), Painting of His Excellency Colonel Samuel Wensley Blackall - Govenor [sic] Of Queensland 1868-1871, retrieved 13 May 2025

[22] "Recent Acquisitions By Queensland National Art Gallery". The Telegraph. Queensland, Australia. 22 July 1938. p. 9 (CITY FINAL LAST MINUTE NEWS). Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[23] "GENERAL INTELLIGENCE". The Queanbeyan Age. Vol. VII, no. 299. New South Wales, Australia. 7 June 1866. p. 3. Retrieved 13 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.

[24] "Myra Felton (Artist) - Art Index". DX Lab | State Library of NSW. Archived from the original on 2 June 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.

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