Shirley Williamson (1875–1944) was an American artist and educator, known for her seaside paintings and monotype prints. She was active between 1913 until 1940, in New York City, the San Francisco Bay Area and Carmel, California.

Shirley Williamson
Born
Maud Shirley Perry

(1875-05-25)May 25, 1875
New York City, U.S.
DiedMarch 30, 1944(1944-03-30) (aged 68)
EducationArt Students League of New York, Académie Julian
Years active1913–1940
Known forartist
MovementCalifornia Impressionism

Early life and education edit

At birth she was named Maud Shirley Perry and was born May 25, 1875, in New York City, New York.[1][2] She attended classes at the Art Students League of New York studying with William Merritt Chase, and later with Arthur Wesley Dow.[3] She married physician Edward Lincoln Williamson in 1903, together they had a son.[3][2] Williamson continued her studies at Académie Julian in Paris, studying with Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant and with Auguste Rodin.[3]

Career edit

Between 1913 and 1926, the Williamson's lived in Berkeley and around the East Bay.[3] By 1914, they had a second home in Carmel, California and the same year The New York Times newspaper named Williamson one of a few “notable” artists of Carmel.[3][4] Her monotype print work was exhibited at the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exhibition (PPIE) in the United States Section, sponsored by the San Francisco Art Association.[5]

In 1927, the family moved to 1344 Tasso Street in Palo Alto, while the family still maintained the second home in Carmel.[3] Her husband died by 1930, and the family moved two years later in 1932 to nearby 521 Addison Avenue in Palo Alto.[3]

She was a member of the National Association of Women Painter's and Sculptors; the Pacific Art League (previously known as Palo Alto Art Club); and San Francisco Art Association.[1] While living in New York City, Williamson had been a president and member of the Woman's Art Club of New York.[3][4]

She taught craft classes at Carmel Summer School of Art in 1924 and 1925,[3] a dramatics class at Stanford University Summer School in 1930,[6] and after 1940 she taught evening classes at Palo Alto High School.[1]

Shirley Williamson died on March 30, 1944, in Palo Alto,[1] and she is buried in Albany, New York.

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Hughes, Eda Milton (1989). Artists in California 1786–1940, II. Ann Arbor, MI: Bruan-Brumfield Inc. ISBN 0961611219.
  2. ^ a b "WILLIAMSON-PERRY Wedding, Christ Church, East Orange, New Jersey". Newspapers.com. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle from Brooklyn, New York. September 20, 1903. p. 21. Retrieved 2020-07-08.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Cannon, Jennie Vennerström; Edwards, Robert W. (2012). Jennie V. Cannon: The Untold History of the Carmel and Berkeley Art Colonies (PDF). Vol. 1. Oakland, CA: East Bay Heritage Project. pp. 665–666.
  4. ^ a b "Arts at Home and Abroad - The California Coast". The New York Times. February 1, 1914. p. M-15. Retrieved 2020-07-08.
  5. ^ Illustrated catalogue of the post-exposition exhibition in the Department of Fine Arts, Panama-Pacific International Exposition, San Francisco, California, January first to May first, nineteen hundred and sixteen. San Francisco Art Association. 1915. p. 59.
  6. ^ Annual Report of the President of Stanford University for the ... Academic Year Ending ... Stanford, CA: Stanford University. 1930. p. 181.

External links edit