{{Short description|Australian painter}} {{for|the curler|Fred Britton (curler)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2015}} {{Use Australian English|date=May 2015}}
'''Frederick Christian Britton''' (21 May 1889 – 14 December 1931) was an artist and arts educator in South Australia and New South Wales.
==History== Britton was born in Peckham, London and studied painting at the Brook Green School of Art,<ref name=teaching>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article8712366 |title=Teaching Art |newspaper=The Advertiser |location=Adelaide |date=14 April 1916 |accessdate=17 February 2015 |page=8 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}</ref> then the Slade School of Fine Art, London under Professor Henry Tonks<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article16813914 |title=Obituary |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=17 December 1931 |accessdate=17 February 2015 |page=13 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}</ref> and the Hammersmith School of Arts and Crafts.<ref name=teaching/> In 1908 he served as official artist for Flinders Petrie's archaeological expedition to Egypt and moved to Adelaide, South Australia in 1910 or 1911, and joined the staff of the South Australian School of Art under J. Christie Wright, then in 1916 served as his replacement when he went off to war.<ref name=teaching/> He enlisted in April 1918 and served as an official War Artist, in the same unit as Web Gilbert and Louis McCubbin.
He returned to Adelaide and for a time worked for publishers Tyrrell's Ltd., then in August 1921 was appointed by Edith Napier Birks as founding painting master of the School of Fine Arts, North Adelaide.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article63193337 |title=The Joy of Art |newspaper=The Register |location=Adelaide |date=13 August 1921 |accessdate=17 February 2015 |page=12 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}</ref> He was a member of the South Australian Society of Arts, but quite critical of a section of its membership.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65048121 |title=Mr. Van Raalte and the Society of Art |newspaper=The Register |location=Adelaide |date=6 December 1923 |accessdate=17 February 2015 |page=10 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}</ref> In 1927 he moved to Sydney, replaced by F. Millward Grey, to join the advertising studio of Smith and Julius, then was appointed to the East Sydney Technical College.
==Works== Britton is represented in the following collections: *Carrick Hill *National Gallery of Victoria ''On the Murray'' (etching) [http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/col/work/28872 view here] *Powerhouse Museum ''Demolition of the Old Sydney Mint'' (1927 Etching) *Historic Houses Trust ''Hyde Park Barracks & District Court'' [http://collection.hht.net.au/firsthhtpictures/fullRecordPicture.jsp?recnoListAttr=recnoList&recno=31680 view here] *Art Gallery of South Australia :*''Railway Station, Adelaide'' (1924 pencil drawing) [https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/collection-publications/collection/works/adelaide-railway-station/33298/ view here]; :*''"Granny" Euniapon'' of Point McLeay (1916 crayon sketch).<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article124845435 |title=New Pictures Art Exhibition |newspaper=The Daily Herald (Adelaide) |location=South Australia |date=14 November 1916 |access-date=29 January 2020 |page=5 |via=Trove }}</ref> Elsewhere spelled "Unaipon". :*''Pininbingerie'', companion piece to the above.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article209774721 |title=Federal Art Exhibition |newspaper=The Express and Telegraph |location=South Australia |date=13 November 1917 |access-date=18 February 2020 |page=4 |via=Trove }}</ref>
==Family== He married Annie "Nance" Russell in 1912; they had one daughter Zara.
== References == {{Reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Britton, Frederick Christian}} Category:Australian art educators Category:20th-century Australian lithographers Category:Australian etchers Category:Australian war artists Category:Australian advertising artists and illustrators Category:Australian designers Category:1889 births Category:1931 deaths Category:20th-century Australian painters Category:20th-century Australian male artists Category:Australian male painters Category:British emigrants to Australia