Helena Modjeska Chase
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
September 23, 1900
- New York School of Fine and Applied Arts
- Putney Graduate School of Teacher Education (MEd)
- Artist
- writer
- equestrian
Helena Modjeska Chase | |
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_taken_in_ca1975.jpg) Drea, c. 1975 | |
| Born | Helena Modjeska Chase September 23, 1900 Omaha, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Died | December 22, 1986 Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S. |
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| Spouses | |
| Children | 5, including Priscilla McClure Johnson |
| Relatives | Carmelita Hinton (sister) |
Helena Modjeska Chase Johnson Drea (born Helena Modjeska Chase; September 23, 1900 – December 22, 1986) was an American artist, writer, and equestrian.[1][2]
Drea was born in Omaha, Nebraska on September 23, 1900.[3]
Her father, Clement Chase,[1] was a publisher and editor of The Excelsior newspaper in Omaha and bookstore owner.[4][5] Her mother, Lula Belle Edwards Chase, came from a socialite background and allegedly had ancestors who arrived on the Mayflower.[6] Drea was the fourth and youngest child. She was named after her godmother, Polish actress Helena Modjeska.[7] The Chase family often hosted gatherings, attracting artists, writers, actors, and dancers to their home in Omaha.[8][9] Drea's grandfather, Colonel Champion Spaulding Chase, served as the mayor of Omaha.[10]
Drea attended Brownell Hall, an Episcopal church school for women. During the summers of 1913 and 1914, she also studied at the Art Institute of Chicago.[11][12] Her mother was an artist as well whom also studied at the Art Institute of Chicago.[13] Her mother's watercolor work and Drea's statuette called "Day Dreams" were often exhibited together.[citation needed]
Drea studied at the Latin school in Chicago and took art and dancing lessons at the Chamber's Academy Ballroom.[14] While attending the Mary C. Wheeler School in Providence, Rhode Island, she was elected one of the editors of the school magazine, the Quill.[15][16][17]
In 1916, Drea designed a poster for a fundraising effort to support Unit No.1 of the American Fund for French Wounded Civilian Relief. Her poster was selected for exhibition in New York and later displayed at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.[18]
Drea graduated from the New York School of Fine and Applied Arts in 1923.[1]
Later in life, after raising her five children, Helena joined the Putney Graduate School of Teacher Education's "World Study Trip" and earned a Master of Education degree in 1958. During her travels in 1956–1957, she visited 38 countries.[19]