An advocate of the British Watercolor Schools, Edward Duncan was a painstakingly skilled artist in his preferred media.  He did train in oil as well, and was an accomplished and professional engraver.  He started his own engraving studio after tutelage under the Havell Brothers in London, and primarily created print works for Fores of Piccadilly and marines from originals of William Huggins, whose daughter Bertha he married.

Within his own paintings, and once he had met Huggins, the official artist to the royal court of William IV, Duncan branched out into marine subjects, but almost always held to coastal and harbor subjects, while he continued to paint landscape scenes often populated with animals and farms.  His watercolors are technically most defined and detailed.

Duncan was a prolific exhibitor of his paintings, showing more than 40 at the Royal Academy and the Society of British Artists, while including more than 500 watercolors and drawings in the shows of the Old and New Watercolor Societies during his career.

Edward Duncan was a member of the Royal Watercolor Society as well as the afore mentioned institutions, and has a collection of works in the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich, alongside Huggins.  His obituary mentions his numerous friends (Dickens, Stanfield, David Cox, Frank Topham..) and concludes that he was a "singularly lovable and honest man". He was buried in Highgate cemetery.

Information provided by the artist's great, great, great granddaughter, Sara Coxon-Hayles