The following was submitted by Max A. Leason, son of the artist.

Percy Leason was born in the remote wheat farm district of Kaniva, Victoria, Australia in 1889. His father was the proprietor of a saddlery shop, and his parents had expected he would carry on the family tradition of wheat farming or saddlery making. But in his adolescent years he demonstrated an early interest in drawing. He was reported to have built a studio in his back yard out of a piano case and odd bits of lumber where he spent time on his art activities. He painted landscapes, still life, studies, and portraits of himself and his mother.

His first encouragement came when he won first prize in painting at a State Fair in 1904. In his late grammar school y...