Edward William Payton (21 May 1859 – 2 October 1944) was a photographer and painter in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. Payton was born in

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...

, England. He studied art at the Municipal School of Art

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

under E. R. Taylor. He has received several medals and prizes in national competitions. He also studied at the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...

, as well as in Antwerp and Paris. In 1882 he left for

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, and in early 1883 from

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

he travelled further to New Zealand. Starting from the southern coastal town of

Bluff Bluff or The Bluff may refer to: Places Australia * Bluff, Queensland, Australia, a town * The Bluff, Queensland (Ipswich), a rural locality in the city of Ipswich * The Bluff, Queensland (Toowoomba Region), a rural locality * Bluff River (New So ...

he travelled wide and far in the country, making sketches and photos about the countryside and Maori people. He settled down in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

and from there he visited the Hot Lakes district. He has seen and painted the

Pink and White Terraces The Pink and White Terraces ( and ), were natural wonders of New Zealand. They were reportedly the largest silica sinter deposits on earth. Until recently, they were lost and thought destroyed in the 1886 eruption of Mount Tarawera, while new hy ...

before and after the

Mount Tarawera Mount Tarawera is a volcano on the North Island of New Zealand within the older but volcanically productive Ōkataina Caldera. Located 24 kilometres southeast of Rotorua, it consists of a series of rhyolitic lava domes that were fissured d ...

eruption. In 1887 he exhibited in the

Auckland Art Gallery Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki is the principal public gallery in Auckland, New Zealand. It has the most extensive collection of national and international art in New Zealand and frequently hosts travelling international exhibitions. Set be ...

, and in 1888 he published ''Round About New Zealand'', a folio of etchings of Auckland and Rotorua. He became the first director of the

Elam School of Art The Elam School of Fine Arts, founded by John Edward Elam, is part of the Faculty of Creative Arts and Industries at the University of Auckland. Students study degrees in fine art with an emphasis on a multidisciplinary approach. The schoo ...

in 1890, a post which he held for 35 years, retiring in 1924. In 1930, he travelled to Europe and added to the Mackelvie Collection in Auckland Art Gallery by the purchase on behalf of the trustees of 134 paintings and about 100 prints. In later life he settled in Rotorua. He died in Tauranga at the age of 85 on 2 October 1944. File:Edward William Payton - Study of a Maori woman.jpg, Study of a Maori woman File:Edward William Payton - Three Women in a waka, Rotoiti.jpg, Three Women in a waka, Rotoiti File:Edward William Payton - Hinemoa's Bath, Mokoia Island, Lake Rotorua.jpg, Hinemoa's Bath, Mokoia Island, Lake Rotorua File:Edward William Payton - Deserted Whare near Rotorua.jpg, Deserted Whare near Rotorua

References

Further reading