Leonard Fryer (16th-century artist) facts for kids

Leonard Fryer (who also spelled his name Frier) was an English artist. He lived a long time ago and died in 1605. He worked for the royal family, mainly painting decorations for their palaces.

Working for the Royals

Leonard Fryer was likely the son of William Fryer, who was also a painter in London. In 1576, Leonard joined a group called the London Painter-Stainers Company. This was a guild for painters.

Fryer became a special painter for Queen Elizabeth I. This job was called "sergeant-painter." It meant he was the main painter for the Queen. In 1598, he was given this important job for the rest of his life.

Later, when King James I became king, Fryer continued to work for the royal family. In 1605, he shared the sergeant-painter job with another artist, John de Critz. It seems Fryer might have been sick around this time, as John de Critz soon took over the job completely.

Decorating Palaces

Queen Elizabeth I asked Leonard Fryer to decorate a long hallway at Oatlands Palace in 1598. He painted the wooden walls to look like fancy wood, called "flotherwoode." He added shiny gold and silver details. He also painted patterns that looked like "markatree," which was similar to marquetry (inlaid wood designs). He used a "sweet varnish" to finish the work, probably because it smelled nice.

Fryer also helped with Queen Elizabeth I's funeral. He painted banners and made shiny copies of the crown jewels for a statue of the Queen. He even gilded (covered in gold) the leather straps for the horses.

When King James I took the throne, Fryer painted the ceiling of the old Banqueting House at Whitehall Palace. He painted a huge area, over 500 square yards, with designs that looked like "clouds."

Fryer's will (his last wishes) mentioned that he was still owed money for painting work. This work was for the coronation of King James and Anne of Denmark in 1603. He also painted for their special entry into London in 1604.

In 1605, Leonard Fryer gave a fancy cup to the Painter-Stainers' Hall in London. This cup is still there today.

A Family of Artists

Leonard's brother, Robert Fryer, was also a painter. He died in 1617, but we don't know much about his specific work.

Both Leonard and Robert had sons who became painters too. The family signed a petition about "smalt," which was a blue paint made from crushed glass. This shows they were involved in the painting business for a long time. There might have been another brother named "Reynold Fryer" who painted at Greenwich Palace, but it's possible this was a mistake in the records and meant Leonard.