Painter of pictures and murals and draughtsman, born in Lewes, Sussex. He studied at King Edward VII School of Art in Newcastle upon Tyne under Richard Hatton, at Royal College of Art with William Rothenstein and then in Italy as a Prix de Rome winner, 1923. Elected RA in 1938. Lawrence was a fine figure painter and a RA stalwart for many years, his work having a strong underlying draughtsmanship. Also showed RP of which he was a member and widely abroad. Among Lawrence's notable murals are ones in Laing Art Gallery and Museum, Newcastle; Palace of Westminster; and Bank of England. Lived in London.

During WW1 Lawrence was in the Tyneside Pioneers, and according to Richard Dunning was in the front line 100 yards from Lochnagar when it was blown up. Given that the (unannounced) 27 ton explosion was heard and felt in Kew, it must have unnerved him considerably - fortunately the Pioneers were the only troops, out of 100,000, who didn’t go over the top on that day. Lawrences masterpiece, The Altruists, (first exhibited at British Empire Exhibition, Wembley, 1924, then British Pavilion, 1925 Paris and now lost) showing First World War soldiers and a selection of robed figures grouped on either side of a risen Christ, was his most ambitious serious attempt to sublimate his traumatic WW1 experiences.

With thanks to artbiogs.co.uk

^{Biography from Liss Llewellyn}

Alfred Kingsley Lawrence [also known as A.K. Lawrence] was born in Lewes, East Sussex, England on 4 October 1893 and studied under Richard George Hatton at King Edward VII School of Art in Newcastle upon Tyne; under William Rothenstein at the Royal College of Art in London; and, after winning the Prix de Rome in 1923, at the British School in Rome for two years.

Lawrence worked primarily as a portrait and figure painter. He was a frequent exhibitor at the Royal Academy in London from 1929 to 1973. He also exhibited at the Royal Society of Portrait Painters in London and widely abroad.

Lawrence painted several murals including for the Bank of England in London; County Hall in Chelmsford; the Palace of Westminster in London; and Laing Art Gallery and Museum in Newcastle.

A large allegorical frieze by him entitled "The Altruists" was exhibited at the British Empire Exhibition in Wembley in 1924 and in the British Pavilion at the Exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes in Paris in 1925.  It is reproduced in ‘Reports on the Present Position and Tendencies of the Industrial Arts as indicated at the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts, Paris, 1925’ (London: Department of Overseas Trade, 1927 p. 60A).

An historical painting by Lawrence entitled "Queen Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh" was reproduced in ‘Artwork’ September-November 1927 p. 195.

Lawrence was elected a member of the Art Workers Guild in 1928; an Associate of the Royal Academy (A.R.A.) in 1930; a Royal Academician (R.A.) in 1938; a member of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters (R.P.) in 1947; and a Senior RA in 1968.

His address was given as 42 Heaton Road, Newcastle upon Tyne in 1922; 16a Hill Road, St. John's Wood, London in 1929 and 1932; 68 Romney Street, Westminster, London in 1933 and 1938; 30 Holland Park Road, London in 1939 and 1975. He died on 5 April 1975.

_{Text source: Art History Research net (AHR net)}