Edwin Austin Abbey began his art studies under a landscape painter in Philadelphia. By the age of nineteen Abbey moved to New York, taking a full-time position drawing for Harper and Brothers, the publishers of weekly news, monthly literary, and books.

He left Harpers at the age of 22 to pursue a free-lance career but returned in 1876 and worked several more years. A proponent of drawing from life, the work of the Pre-Raphaelites inspired him, leading to a journey to England in 1878 and there he remained there for the rest of his life, an expatriate at the age of thirty.

Abbey was exceptional in drawing and pen work. Although some of the spontaneity is lost on engraved ink drawings Abbey was quick to see the advantage of reproduction, producing many illustrations for many Harpers serials including a series of illustrations for Shakespeare's comedies in 1887.

While in Europe, he met and was inspired by the great artists of the day including a lasting friendship with John Singer Sargent Abbey often lived at Sargent's studio in Broadway and they painted together often. He was also friends with Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Whistler, Jean-François Millet and others.

A major portion of Abbey's career was spent in illustration but his principle monuments were in his murals. In 1890 he received a commission for the Holy Grail mural at the Boston Public Library. The first half were completed and installed in 1895, the remainder in 1901. That year Abbey was elected President of the Royal Birmingham Society of Artists.

Abbey stood among the foremost rank of painters of historical and subject pictures. He was obsessed with detail and fascinated by medieval England. He acquired great fame as an illustrator of Shakespeare, whose plays also supplied him with the subjects for some of his most successful pictures.

Edwin Austin Abbey died in 1911, leaving many wonderful works of art and revered as a great painter of historical subjects.