Original works of art

Perhaps more than any artist, Frances Fairman is associated with the oriental breeds and, in particular, the Japanese Chin. She was very active in the Ladies' Kennel Association and enjoyed the patronage of many prominent dog fanciers, including Queen Alexandra. She exhibited twice at the Royal Academy.

She received no training in animal painting, but studied in famous London and Continental 'ateliers'.

Fairman worked in a soft, impressionistic style, often including a flower in her compositions. As one interviewer from The Ladies' Kennel Journal pointed out: "What Miss Fairman feels about flowers and fruits she feels about dogs, she loves to have them around her. The walls of her studio are lined with studies of tropical vegetation, portraits of dogs, studies of her own dogs, studies of heads of famous dogs, and her own pet spaniels lie in their cages in the middle of the studio and repose in her visitor's laps."