Katherine McLean Holmes

Katherine McLean Holmes (1849 – 16 January 1925) was a New Zealand painter whose work is held in the permanent collection of the National Library of New Zealand.

The Cliffs, Nelson, painted by Holmes in 1878

Early life

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Holmes was born in Geelong, Australia, the third daughter of New Zealander Matthew Holmes of Otago.[1][2] Her sister Annie Julia White was also an artist, and her brother Allan Holmes was a cricketer and lawyer.

Career

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She exhibited at the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts every year from 1883 to 1908.[3] She worked with W. M. Hodgkins and exhibited with the Otago Art Society from 1878 and served on its council during 1886–87.[1][2]

She moved to Hawkestone Street in Wellington in 1892 where she socialised with Rudyard Kipling, and the Duke and Duchess of York.[1]

In 1893, she organised a bazaar in order to raise $100 to fund structural repairs to the New Zealand National Art Gallery and Dominion Museum.[4]

Legacy

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The collection of her paintings at the National Library of New Zealand comprises individual and group portraits.[5] Her painting of a timber mill featured in the 2021 book The People and The Land.[6]

Death

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She died in Wellington on 16 January 1925 aged 76.[1][7]

On her death in 1925, she left a painting of the Henry VII chapel by Gertrude Keeling to Dunedin Public Art Gallery.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Search Results – Dunedin Public Art Gallery". collection.dunedin.art.museum. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  2. ^ a b "HOLMES, Katherine McLean 1849–1925? | NZETC". nzetc.victoria.ac.nz. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  3. ^ "Holmes, Katherine McLean". findnzartists.org.nz. Archived from the original on 15 May 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  4. ^ Robin Key and Tony Eden. "PORTRAITOF A CENTURY HISTORY OF THE N.Z. ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS 1882—1982" (PDF). p. 28. Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 March 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  5. ^ Holmes, Katherine McLean (1 January 1879). "Katherine Holmes illustrated album". Katherine Holmes illustrated album | Items | National Library of New Zealand | National Library of New Zealand. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  6. ^ Bassett, J., Olssen, E., Binney, J. (2021). The People and The Land / Te Tangata me Te Whenua: An Illustrated History of New Zealand, 1820–1920. New Zealand: Bridget Williams Books. p272
  7. ^ Platts, Una (1980). Nineteenth Century New Zealand Artists: A Guide and Handbook. Avon Fine Prints. Archived from the original on 26 March 2020. Retrieved 27 March 2022.