Hal Hurst (1865-1938)

Born Henry William Lowe Hurst in London in 1865, he was the son of Henry Hurst, a well-known African traveller and publisher. He was educated at St. Paul's School in London and soon after started recording the political instability of Ireland through drawings and illustrations. He travelled to the United States of America where he found work illustrating newspapers in New York and Philadelphia. Hal returned to Europe studying art at the Royal Academy Schools and the Acad�mie Julian in Paris. He exhibited extensively at all the principal London galleries and was elected member of the Royal Society of British Artists in 1896, Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours in 1898, and the Royal Institute of Oil Painters in 1900.He was a founder member of the Royal Miniature Society from its inception in 1896 and elected Vice President, a position he held until stepping down in 1913 - he was given the distinction of Honorary member stat