Edwin Austin Abbey RA was an American artist who spent most of his working life in England and played an important role in the founding
of the British School at Rome in the early years of the 20th century.

He was a successful artist, illustrator and mural painter and was particularly interested in the relationship between mural decoration and architecture. When he died in 1911 his widow, Gertrude Abbey, provided funds from his legacy to build seven studio apartments at the BSR, which have accommodated all resident artists to this day.

The Incorporated EA Abbey Memorial Scholarships (the Abbey Awards) were founded by Gertrude Abbey in 1926, to enable British and American painters to pursue their artistic practices.
Since then, there has been a tradition that recipients of Abbey funding – Scholars and, more recently, Fellows - spend time working in the studios at the British School at Rome. There has been an Abbey Scholar at the BSR from 1926 almost without interruption up to the present day. The Abbey Fellowships were established in their present form in 1990.

Danny Rolph, Chair
Bernice Donszelmann, Vice-Chair
Peter Brades RIBA
Sacha Craddock
Catrin Huber
Susannah Hyman
Paul Huxley RA
Vanessa Jackson RA
Eddie Peake
Anne Ryan
Andrew Stahl
Martin Westwood

The Abbey Council

Administrator

Megan Watkins