Mary Kent Harrison - Self Portrait - Oil on canvas - 1942
Mary Kent Harrison - Self Portrait - Oil paint on canvas - 1942
This website was created by Mary Kent Harrison's youngest son, Stephen Howard Harrison, in September 2011 as a work in progress in order to put on record the work created by Mary Kent Harrison. I have a great deal of archive material the knowledge of which I wish to share so that more can be known about the life, work and achievements of Mary Kent Harrison. I hope that the project will also be a celebration of her achievement. At the time of writing there appears to be nothing yet published about her apart from articles written in the 1940's and 1950's, and this might be disapointing for anyone who has her work, or whose curiosity is aroused by it when they come across it in galleries, auctions or publications where it makes an appearance from time to time. Hopefully this project will go some way to safeguard the heritage of her work and develop interest in it.
The site evolves as new material in whatever form is gratefully received.. Over the coming years the idea is to expand it with images of her work and other archive material. The overall form of the site will evolve during the process. The priority is the exposure of her work on this site, the exploration of which may well go a long way to reveal her background, life and personality. Eventually,
All feedback and contributions to this project are very welcome (see contact page). Of particular benefit would be photographs of her work. It is thrilling for me to see some of these paintings and drawings again, and in some cases for the first time. By the time I was born, my mother had already been exhibiting and selling her work for no less than twenty years. Mary Kent Harrison kept a careful record of the creation, exhibition and sale of her work including details of each purchaser where possible. I have a photographic record of some of her work, but the photographs are mostly in black and white. It is wonderful to hear from the current owners of her work, and to obtain colour photographic reproductions with which to enhance the site. It would also be good to hear from any one who knew her, or who has acquaintances or relatives who knew her personally or professionally, and who may have interesting insights to reveal.
Please feel free to get in touch if you have anything at all you wish to share about the life and work of Mary Kent Harrison or her husband Kent Harrison. I hope you will come with me on this journey of extraordinary discovery and celebration.
In places I have abbreviated Mary Kent Harrison's name to MKH. I have held back some place names and all detail of current ownership of her work in order to protect privacy. If there is anything within the website that anyone wishes to have altered or removed, do please get in touch.
Since I created the site, it has been wonderful to see interest in MKH and her work develop. Several of her paintings have been used in recent publications. Others have generated a healthy interest when they appear at auction. I am very grateful for the very considerable contact and interest I have received.
Stephen Howard Harrison.
p.s. Click here to visit my own painting website. I live and paint in Scotland.
Site last updated : March 2024