Emilie Barrington
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
October 18, 1841
Emilie Barrington | |
|---|---|
| Born | Emilie Isabel Wilson October 18, 1841 |
| Died | March 9, 1933 (aged 91) |
| Occupation(s) | Biographer, author, artist |
| Known for | Playing a leading role in establishing Leighton House as a museum |
| Spouse | Russell Barrington |
Emilie Isabel Barrington (18 October 1841 – 9 March 1933),[1] was a British biographer, artist, and novelist.[2][3][4] She became associated with the Holland Park Circle, was instrumental in establishing Leighton House Museum,[5] and co-founded the Kyrle Society.[2]
Emilie Isabel Wilson was born on 18 October 1841 in Mayfair, London, the youngest of six daughters born to James and Elizabeth Preston Wilson.[2] James Wilson was a merchant, an active participant in the Anti-Corn Law League, and the founder of The Economist.[2] Emilie spent her early years on the Continent and was educated, like her sisters, by governesses.[2] She attended school in Cologne 1855–56, and in 1858 went to a finishing school in Paris.[2]
In 1859, James Wilson became the financial member of the supreme council of India.[2] He died the following year.[2]
On 1 July 1868, Wilson married Russell Barrington, with whom she had two sons. Their second child, Ivo, died in 1871 aged four months.[2] Around the time of her marriage, Emilie met the artist George Frederic Watts.[2] They became close friends, and she later wrote his biography.[2]
Work
In the 1860s, Wilson met the activist Emily Faithfull, with whom she shared an interest in increasing the employment opportunities available to women.[3][2]
Barrington formed a friendship with one of Frederic Leighton's sisters, and went on to write the first major biography of the artist: Life, Letters, and Works of Frederic Leighton (1906). After Leighton's death in 1896, Barrington was instrumental in establishing Leighton House as a museum.[2] She acted as President of the Leighton House Society.[3]
In 1881, Barrington helped to found the Kyrle Society, which aimed to "bring beauty home to the poor".[2] She painted a portrait of one of its leading figures, Octavia Hill, and became an early council member of the National Trust, of which Hill was a founder.[3]
During the 1890s, Barrington wrote two novels: Lena's Picture (1892) and Helen's Ordeal (1894).[2] A third, A St. Luke of the 19th Century was published on her 82nd birthday in 1923.[3][1] She contributed to The Spectator, The Nineteenth Century, and The Fortnightly Review.[3][2]
