Virginia Hargraves Wood
American painter (c. 1872–1941)
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Virginia Hargraves Wood (married name: Virginia Hargraves Wood Goddard; c. 1872 – February 24, 1941) was an American painter, printmaker, illustrator, and teacher.[1] She is best known for her painted portraits of women and children, and numerous book illustrations.[1][2][3] Wood was one of the founder members of the Virginia Fine Arts Society in Alexandria.[1]
Virginia Wood
Virginia Hargraves Wood | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1872 – c. 1873 Missouri, United States |
| Died | February 24, 1941 (aged 68–69) near Ivy in Ablemarle County, Virginia, United States |
Burial place | Saint Paul's Cemetery, Ivy, Virginia, United States |
| Other names | Virginia Hargraves Wood Goddard, Virginia Wood |
| Education | Chase School of Art |
| Occupations | Visual artist, illustrator, printmaker, teacher |
| Known for | Paintings, drawings, portraits, engravings, book illustrations |
| Movement | Peconic Bay Impressionism |
| Spouse | Charles Franc Goddard (m. 1930–1941; death) |
| Relatives | Waddy Butler Wood (brother) |
Early life and family
Virginia Hargraves Wood was born c. 1872 in Missouri, United States, to parents Clara Forsyth Hargraves and lawyer-turned-Confederate States Army Cpt. Charles E. Wood.[4][5] She had eight siblings, including noted architect Waddy Butler Wood.[6]
In 1930, she married lawyer Charles F. Goddard (1862–1954) in New York City.[7][8] After marriage she primarily used her maiden name for her art career.[9] However her niece (and Waddy's daughter) was also named Virginia Hargraves Wood at birth (her married name was Virginia Wood Riggs; 1906–?), also worked as a painter, and worked for the Works Progress Administration (WPA) post office mural project in Pennsylvania.[10]
Career
Wood attended classes in New York City, and Paris;[9] and studied under artists John Singer Sargent,[11] Charles Webster Hawthorne, Frank DuMond, and William Merritt Chase at the Chase School of Art (now Parsons School of Design).[12]
While studying in Paris, she visited a friend in London and became in-demand for her portrait work.[11] Sitters for her portraits included Lady Anglesey, various works for the Seth Barton French family, and portraits of the four daughters of George Jay Gould.[11] Wood also painted a noted portrait of Gertrude Stein in her older age.[13]
She maintained an art studio in New York City.[14] Wood also worked at Hawthorne's Cape Cod School of Art in Provincetown;[15] and was a frequent guest at the Caroline M. Bell studio school in Mattituck in Long Island, New York.[16] She was a member of the American Federation of Arts (AFA).[1]
Death and legacy
In her later life she moved to Mattituck.[7] She died after an extended illness on February 24, 1941, while staying at her sister-in-laws house (and her childhood home) at Spring Hill in Ablemarle County near Ivy, Virginia.[9]