Edith Alsop
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Edith Alsop | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Edith Annie Mary Alsop 28 August 1871 |
| Died | 10 October 1958 (aged 87) |
| Education | National Gallery School |
| Known for | Book illustration, Woodcuts, Linocut, Painting |
| Movement | Modernism |
Edith Annie Mary Alsop (28 August 1871 – 10 October 1958) was an Australian artist.
Alsop was born in 1871 in Hawthorn, Victoria to John Alsop and Anne Alsop (née Howard).[1] She was one of five siblings, with younger sisters Florence and Ruth, and younger brothers Herbert and Rodney.[1] Her father's family were from Derbyshire and voyaged five months to Australia, arriving in Adelaide in 1849.[2] Her family were mine owners, and when the gold rush began they were forced to emigrate to Victoria in 1854 when they ran out of workers.[3]
Her family settled on Studley Park Road in Kew[4] where John started a career at the Melbourne Savings Bank.[5] As a child Alsop attended Ruyton Girls' School where she studied music and painting.[6] The family were very musical and before Edith's sister Florence was born, Anne acted as pianist for a Glee Club held at their home organised by a critic for the Argus.[3] Edith herself learned piano and viola.[3] Her first art teacher was a Portuguese artist who spoke no English and gave her lessons in French.[3] His name was Artur Jose De Souza Loureiro and he taught at Ruyton, with Edith continuing her education with him after she left school.[7] She also studied at the National Gallery School between 1898 and 1904 with intermittent breaks to travel overseas.[7]
Early career
Alsop first exhibited with the Victorian Artists' Society in 1903 while she was still a student.[8] In 1904 Edith was awarded second prize in the anatomical figure section in the National Gallery section of students' works.[9] In 1908 she won a coveted prize of designing the catalogue cover for the Arts and Crafts Society.[10] She was an early member of the Melbourne Lyceum Club, exhibiting in 1899 with fellow artists May Vale and Janie Wilkinson Whyte.[11]
Just like music, art was a family affair. An architect in the Arts and Crafts movement, Edith's brother Rodney would collaborate with his family for designing the interiors of houses.[12] Rodney exhibited his architectural design at the same Arts and Crafts Society exhibition in 1909 that Edith exhibited her fairy scenes.[13] This would be her first foray into fantasy illustration, with her collaborating in 1910 with Ida Rentoul Outhwaite to create panels for the children's ward at Melbourne's Homeopathic Hospital.[14]
From here she would move into book illustration, with Some Childrens' [sic] Songs by Marion Alsop (no relation) and Dorothy McCrae featuring her designs.[15] She went to Europe in 1912[16][17] where she studied book illustration at the Central School of Arts and Crafts in London.[18] The outbreak of war forced her return in 1914[19][20] and in 1915 she contributed illustrations for Tales of the Fairies by Lewis Marsh.[21] She was also illustrating magazine covers during this time, including The Lone Hand[22] and The New Idea.[23]
The most significant book illustrated by Alsop was The Cobweb Ladder by Joice Nankivell in 1916.[24] Edith's fairy illustrations were described by The Herald as "appropriately fanciful and excellently drawn"[25] and the Sydney Morning Herald "Miss Edith Alsop's illustrations have excellently reproduced its spirit and atmosphere."[26] Despite this achievement, it would be the last children's book she would participate in. The triumph was somewhat overshadowed by Outhwaite's Elves and Fairies,[26] which would be the start of a successful career in the genre.[27]
Her musical sensibilities would continue in her art world involvement, helping organise a pageant play for the Victorian Artists' Society[28] and designing the dresses.[29] Along with sister Florence, Edith would give concerts for the Mission to Seafarers Victoria, and spend her breaks sketching portraits of the seaman to send home to their mothers.[30]
By now Edith was living in Malvern[31] with her parents nearby in Armadale.[32] While the family was volunteering for war efforts she still found time for her art, becoming an office bearer for the Arts and Crafts Society in 1919.[33] She was exhibiting her etchings along such notable artists of the time as Jessie Traill[34] and Victor Cobb.[35] Her mother Anne died in 1920 and father John in 1925[1] which left the siblings to sell the house and head abroad in 1928.[36]
She returned to the Central School of Arts and Crafts, this time studying wood engraving.[37] There was also portrait painting in Paris,[38] where she studied under André Lhote.[37] Her sketches from this time were reproduced in The Herald[39] and woodcuts for greeting cards.[40] While Edith documented their travels through art, her sister Florence wrote articles for the newspapers.[41]
