Laurence William Wilson was a member of the Ellerman Wilson shipping family. He was a painting companion of George O'Brien (1821-1888) and shared a studio with Girolamo Nerli (1863-1926). He was a prolific and competent painter, whose best work is of very high standard though his potboilers were considered by A.H. O'Keeffe (1858-1941) as "too pretty". Although his works sold well during his lifetime the Wilson family money helped to get him going. Whenever a family member died Wilson would get a legacy. He was said by O'Keeffe to have managed to get through