Millicent Margaret Fisher Prout (31 March 1875– 9 December 1963) was a British artist who helped improve perceptions of modern art in the UK.

Biography

Prout was born in Church Street, Chelsea, on 31 March 1875, the only daughter of the painter Mark Fisher R.A. She studied under her father and at the

Slade School of Art The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...

between 1894 and 1897. By 1914 she was teaching life drawing at the Hammersmith School of Arts and Crafts and had her first solo exhibition at the Beaux Arts Gallery in 1922. Prout was a painter of flowers, landscape and figures in an

Impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

style. She produced various subjects including animals, landscapes, figures, flowers, and other still life. In 1908 she married a farmer, John Prout, and was based in various locations throughout her career including

Harlow, Essex Harlow is a large town and local government district located in the west of Essex, England. Founded as a new town, it is situated on the border with Hertfordshire and London, Harlow occupies a large area of land on the south bank of the upper ...

, London,

Sawbridgeworth Sawbridgeworth is a town and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, close to the border with Essex. It is east of Hertford and north of Epping. It is the northernmost part of the Greater London Built-up Area. History Prior to the Norman ...

in Hertfordshire,

East Grinstead East Grinstead is a town in West Sussex, England, near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders, south of London, northeast of Brighton, and northeast of the county town of Chichester. Situated in the extreme northeast of the county, the civ ...

and was most latterly associated with Sussex and remained there until her death in 1963. Prout often employed unconventional techniques in her artworks, for example by making studies in oil paint before completing a watercolour, she would use certain colours and pigments in unusual ways and sometimes poured water over a work to achieve her desired result. Portraits of women painting were a recurrent theme in such paintings as ''Breakfast in a Country Studio'' (1939) and ''An Artist at her Easel'' (1948). Prout had an extensive career over a period of at least 58 years. She exhibited at the

New English Art Club The New English Art Club (NEAC) was founded in London in 1885 as an alternative venue to the Royal Academy. It continues to hold an annual exhibition of paintings and drawings at the Mall Galleries in London, exhibiting works by both members and a ...

from 1897 (which was an alternative institution for showcasing artists as opposed to the

Royal Academy of Arts The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its purpo ...

, which was mostly unwelcoming to the work of female artists), the

Royal Scottish Academy The Royal Scottish Academy (RSA) is the country’s national academy of art. It promotes contemporary Scottish art. The Academy was founded in 1826 by eleven artists meeting in Edinburgh. Originally named the Scottish Academy, it became the ...

(1935), the

Royal Hibernian Academy The Royal Hibernian Academy (RHA) is an artist-based and artist-oriented institution in Ireland, founded in Dublin in 1823. Like many other Irish institutions, such as the RIA, the academy retained the word "Royal" after most of Ireland became in ...

(1924–39), the Royal Glasgow Institute (1928–58) and the Royal Academy itself in 1921–64. She also exhibited with the

Society of Women Artists The Society of Women Artists (SWA) is a British art body dedicated to celebrating and promoting fine art created by women. It was founded as the Society of Female Artists (SFA) in about 1855, offering women artists the opportunity to exhibit and ...

(1927–63) and the

Women's International Art Club The Women's International Art Club, briefly known as the Paris International Art Club, was founded in Paris in 1900. The club was intended to "promote contacts between women artists of all nations and to arrange exhibitions of their work", and ...

, both institutions for the promotion of the work of women. Prout was elected an associate member of the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

in 1948. She was a member of the Society of Women Artists from 1935 to 1937 and from 1952 to 1958 and was also a member of the New English Art Club. Notable works included: ''Mare and Foal, Dusting the Mantlepiece, Study of a Girl Painting, The Looking Glass and Salthouse, Norfolk.'' A retrospective exhibition of Prout's work was held at the Worthing Art Gallery in 1961, the

Royal Watercolour Society The Royal Watercolour Society is a British institution of painters working in watercolours. The Society is a centre of excellence for water-based media on paper, which allows for a diverse and interesting range of approaches to the medium of wa ...

held a memorial exhibition in 1966 and Blond Fine Art also held a retrospective in 1979.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Prout, Margaret Fisher 1875 births 1963 deaths 20th-century English painters 20th-century English women artists Alumni of the Slade School of Fine Art Artists from London Associates of the Royal Academy English women painters Impressionist artists People from Chelsea, London