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Fisher, Alfred Hugh, 1867 -1945 (artist and photographer)

 Person

Biography

Alfred Hugh Fisher was born in London in 1867 and educated at the City of London School and University College. After 9 years in a city office he relinquished business for art and studied at Lambeth, South Kensington and Paris under Laurens and Constant.

On 29th July 1907 he was chosen by the Visual Instruction Committee to illustrate lecture materials about the Empire for use in British schools. His appointment was for up to three years from 1st September at a salary of £25 a month, plus traveling and subsistence allowance. The Committee reserved to themselves absolute control over the work produced by him during his engagement. It was thought that the scheme would need some 1800 slides, elected from an average of 3 original each. Priority was to be given to Canada, India and South Africa, with Australia and New Zealand, the West Indies, East and West Africa, the Mediterranean and ocean routes as further areas. Fisher would work under the direction of Sir Halford Mackinder, who was to be paid a salary of £300 for his general oversight of the project, in addition to fees for preparing lectures. As Fisher was an artist and not a photographer, he was trained in photographic techniques by the two senior employees of Emery Walker of Sussex House, at a fee of 5 guineas for 10 lessons.

The original aim was to send Fisher to Ceylon and India, then through East Asia to Canada, returning to the United Kingdom in May 1908, with a subsequent journey on the reverse route returning via the Mediterranean; this would enable him to photograph India and Canada at different seasons. However, it was later decided to cover the whole of India in one visit, and Canada the following year. Mackinder issued detailed instructions to Fisher in October. His itinerary included several stops of two or three days in one place since it was thought that he would be able to absorb the atmosphere better than at too rapid a movement from place to place, and he was given authority to purchase photographs for important areas he could not visit. He was to have the educational rather than the pictorial aspect in mind and was to present both the 'native characteristics of the country' and the 'super-added characteristics due to British rule'. He was advised to give a feeling of movement where possible by having people engaged in some activity in the foreground rather than static views of buildings etc. The negatives were to be sent to Newman and Guardia, who would develop them and prepare one print each; the list of photographs taken and the paintings were to be sent direct to Mackinder.

Fisher's journey to Ceylon, India and Burma was originally intended to include Somaliland, Cyprus, Malta and Gibraltar, but he was instructed to omit the last two in order to arrive back in London in time for a projected showing of slides in the presence of the Princess of Wales. This did not in fact take place. Fisher resumed his travels on 24 July 1908 and went to Canada, in which he followed a rather complicated route before sailing from Vancouver on 28 October to visit Wei-hai-wei, Hong Kong, part of the Chinese mainland, Singapore and North Borneo. March 1909 found him back in Canada where he saw something of the end of the winter.

During the summer of 1909 the Princess of Wales attended a meeting on the project at Caxton Hall. £150 was spent on renewing and improving Fisher's equipment and he spent six weeks in the U.K. trying out the apparatus and taking photographs of British scenes for use in lectures for Canada and South Africa. At this time too he married Lillias Wyman.

His final tour was via Gibraltar and Malta to New Zealand, the Pacific and Australia, but money was running out; he was instructed to omit Papua and in 1910 he was informed that no more money was available for expenses and he could not be offered a further engagement. Fisher produced vivid and interesting descriptions of his journeys. His later writings appear to have been chiefly poetry. Lillias Fisher died in 1930 and Hugh Fisher died 2 July 1945.

Sources:

Typescript copy of 'Index to Photographers'.

Found in 5 Collections and/or Records:

 File

Diary letters, 1907 - 1910

 File
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/RCMS 10/1
Scope and Contents

Letters written by Fisher to Halford Mackinder describing his travels (circa 2,000 pages).

Dates: 1907 - 1910
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Fonds

Fisher photograph collection

 Fonds
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/Fisher
Scope and Contents Collection of 29 albums consisting of approximately 3864 photographs taken or collected by A.H. Fisher for the Colonial Office Visual Instruction Committee 1907-1910. The numbering of the collection is problematic and details are provided for each separate album. Photographers: Some of the names which appear are:Hutchins: donor of some photographs of India, but not otherwise identifiedFirebrace: donor of some photographs of India, but not otherwise identifiedRighi: ...
Dates: 1900 - 1910
Conditions Governing Access: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 File

Volume I : Outward journey and Ceylon October-December 1907, 1907-10 - 1907-12

 File
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/Fisher 1
Scope and Contents The album now contains prints numbered in the range 1-167 (originally there were 147). Added numbers are: 60A, 60B, 90A and 99A; spoiled: 37-39, 56, 57, 61, 63, 80, 119, 123, 160, 165; not used 41, 44, 49, 52, 60, 75, 84, 95, 140, 141, 142, 151; missing: 43, 48, 99, 153. The photographs are not arranged totally in numerical order within the album so that 99A, 166-167 follow 69 and 136 follows 74. Subjects covered in this album are: Port Said;Cape Gardafui;Ceylon...
Dates: 1907-10 - 1907-12
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 File

Volume VII : Bombay, Hyderabad, Aden, Somaliland, 1908

 File
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/Fisher 7
Scope and Contents The album now contains photographs numbered in the range 939-1073 (originally there were 134). Added numbers are: 967A, 995A, 1004A, 1071A, 1072A, 1008A (is a painting); spoiled 964-966 and 1055; not used 1063 and 1066; missing 1009, 1010, 1012, 1013, 1015, 1017, 1020, 1030, 1040, 1042, 1044 and 1060. The photographs are not totally in numerical order within the album so that: 967A follows 988. Subjects covered in this album are: Ahmednagar; Bombay: views from the Clock...
Dates: 1908
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 File

Volume VIII : Somaliland, Aden, Cyprus, 1908, 1908

 File
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/Fisher 8
Scope and Contents This album now contains photographs numbered in the range 1074-1224 (originally there were 153). Added numbers: 1250-1255; unnumbered 1 following 1224 (now numbered 1224A); spoiled: 1091 and 1198; not used 1076, 1077 and 1187; missing: 1074, 1075, 1097, 1101, 1110, 1126, 1131, 1134, 1136, 1138, 1139, 1149, 1161, 1206, 1207 and 1218. Subjects covered in this album are:Somaliland: tribesmen and hot springs; Aden: coast police and Camel Corps, shipping; Perim; Cyprus:...
Dates: 1908
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).

Filtered By

  • Subject: Asia (continent) X
  • Subject: Africa (continent) X

Additional filters:

Type
Archival Object 4
Collection 1
 
Subject
India (nation) 4
Adan (governate) 2
Australia (nation) 2
Cyprus (island) 2
Cyprus (nation) 2