Mary Vermuyden Wheelhouse (c. 1868c. 1947)[a] was a British painter, illustrator, toymaker and suffragette.

Illustration by Mary Wheelhouse in George Sand's novel Les Maîtres Sonneurs (The Bagpipers), London, 1908

Early life and education

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Mary Wheelhouse was born in Leeds, Yorkshire. She probably studied at the Scarborough School of Art around 1895 and then spent three years studying in Paris at the Académie Delécluse.[b] The Women's International Art Club (WIAC) was founded by students at the Académie Delécluse and Wheelhouse was on the executive committee of the WIAC 1904–06 and 1908–1914.[1]

Career

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From 1900 Wheelhouse lived in Chelsea and for a time at the same address as the artist Louise Jacobs with whom she ran a shop, Pomona Toys, in Cheyne Walk, supplying children's toys to Fortnum's, Liberty's and Harrods. They exhibited toys at the 1916 Arts and Crafts exhibition.[2] She illustrated a large number of books and children's books, primarily by women writers including George Eliot, Juliana Horatia Ewing, George Sand and Elizabeth Gaskell.[3][4]

Suffrage

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Wheelhouse campaigned for women's suffrage and was a board member of the Artists' Suffrage League, founded in 1907.[5]

Works illustrated include

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Notes and references

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Notes

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  1. ^ Dates vary in the sources.
  2. ^ Sources say that Wheelhouse studied at "Academie Delecture" but there is no record of an Academie Delecture; it seems certain that "Delecture" is a misreading of "Delecluse", given the Delécluse's association with the WIAC of which Wheelhouse was a prominent member.

References

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  1. ^ Yu, Mengting (2018). "5". "A talented and decorative group" :a re‑examination of London's women artists, c.1900–1914 (Doctoral thesis). Nanyang Technological University. hdl:10356/73862.
  2. ^ Green, Rebecca. "Pomona Toys". Dolls' Houses Past & Present.
  3. ^ "Wheelhouse, M. V." WorldCat Identities.
  4. ^ "Wheelhouse, Mary Vermuyden, 1868-1947". Dominic Winter Auctioneers. Cirencester, England. 2018.
  5. ^ "Mary V. Wheelhouse (Illustrator of Cousin Phillis)". goodreads.com.
  6. ^ Holly House and Ridges Row.
  7. ^ Good Wives – A Sequel To "Little Women". G. Bell And Sons. 1911.
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