Biography for Frederick Hollyer

Employment

Photographer. Son of Samuel Hollyer and Mary Ann Hudson. Trained as a reproductive engraver in mezzotint. Hollyer is known for his photographic reproductions of English artwork, including those of the Pre-Raphaelites.

Hollyer photographed works by artists such as Frederic Leighton (1830-1896) and Edward Burne-Jones (1833-1898). His work was of exceptional quality, so much so that it has subsequently been mistaken for originals. G. F. Watts (1817-1904) claims that Hollyer raised the profile of his work and that of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.

Hollyer's platinum portraits of prominent artists, writers and statesmen - including William Morris - are now in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.