Mary Beever (1802 – 31 December 1883) was a British artist and botanist. She and her sister were close friends with their neighbour John Ruskin in the Lake District.
Mary Beever | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1802 Ardwick, Greater Manchester, England |
| Died | 31 December 1883 (aged 80–81) Coniston, Cumbria, England |
Life edit
Beever was born in Ardwick. Her father, William Beever, was a Manchester businessman and their mother, Nanny, died while she was young.[1]
They lived in Birdsgrove House near Ashbourne in Derbyshire before moving to The Thwaite in Coniston in Cumbria in 1827.[1] Mary was a keen botanist and her collections are in several museums.[2] She was elected a member of the Botanical Society of London between 1839 and 1841.[3] Her father died in 1831. Her brother John installed water power for a family printing press and a pond was created where he experimented with different fish foods.[4] Her sister Anne died in 1858 and her brother, John, died the following year. She shared the house with her sister Susan after their sister Margaret died in 1874.[1]
Mary and her sister Susanna were skilled botanical artists and they found themselves in John Ruskin's circle after they first met him in 1873.[1] Ruskin lived on the other side of Coniston and he would write them letters although a short walk or a row in a boat would enable a visit. Ruskin was closest to "Susie" and in 1875 he allowed her to create an abridged version of his book Modern Painters.[5]
Beever died at their home in Coniston in 1883.[1]
References edit
- ^ a b c d e Jane Garnett, ‘Women artists in Ruskin's circle (act. 1850s–1900s)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, October 2005 accessed 19 November 2015
- ^ Ray Desmond (25 February 1994). Dictionary Of British And Irish Botantists And Horticulturalists Including plant collectors, flower painters and garden designers. CRC Press. pp. 61–. ISBN 978-0-85066-843-8.
- ^ D. E. Allen (November 1980). "The Women Members of the Botanical Society of London, 1836–1856". The British Journal for the History of Science. 13 (3): 240–254. doi:10.1017/S0007087400018057. ISSN 0007-0874. JSTOR 4026198. Wikidata Q113958660.
- ^ "Ruskin Linen and Lace". Ruskin Museum. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
- ^ Cook, Edward Tyas (April 2010). The Life of John Ruskin: Volume 2, 1860-1900. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-108-00972-0.
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