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Son of a much
ridiculed poet, William Thomas Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald appears to have had
little or no formal training, but from 1845 he was
exhibiting at the British Institution and the Royal Academy. Although he
is chiefly known for his fairy pieces, Fitzgerald seems to have made a
living as a portrait painter and illustrator, although he also painted
genre scenes. By the late 1850s he had become a regular contributor to The
Illustrated London News, and in 1864 he was a candidate for the Society of
British Artists. He was a member of the Maddox Street Sketching
Club. He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1845 to 1902. Like his
father, Fitzgerald played on his Irish ancestry and was remembered by
members of the Savage Club for his burlesque imitations of old-time actors
and theatrical managers.
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