sAspi MM '.'••-? S'.:^m? v 'Aw fj. •£&• P£? 'm \ spec'srZ ~i* ,'„ j-. '/a / r. ji Women Artists of Birmingham 1890-1950 Vicki Leigh Ingham ATCTV"* NEW SOUTH Women Artists 0/Birmingham, 1890-1950 Vicki Leigh Ingham Birmingham Historical Society Birmingham Historical Society One Sloss Quarters Birmingham, Alabama 35222 Tel. 205 251 1880 . Fax 205 251 3260 This book was published in conjunction with the exhibition: "Art of the New South: Women Artists in Birmingham 1890-1950," organized by the Birmingham Historical Society at the Birmingham Public Tibrary from November 7 to December 31, 2004. Copyright © 2004 by Birmingham Historical Society ISBN 0-943994-29-2 (hardcover) ISBN 0-943994-30-6 (softcover) Tibrary of Congress Control Number: 2004108328 Frontispiece: Delia Dryer, Self Portrait, Illustration Class at the New York School of Art, 1904-1906, pastel on paper, 18 x 24", unsigned, collection of Janie Morgan Johansen. Binding: Carrie Hill's Palette, collection of Tloise Hill Jones. Designed by Scott Fuller Tdited by Marjorie T.White ORIGINAT TIMITTD TDITION Printed in Hong Kong Tabte of Contents Preface 3 Introduction 7 Caroline Lovell 20 Carrie Montgomery 36 Carrie Hill 40 Lucille Douglass 90 Alice Edith Rumph 122 Delia Dyer 136 Hannah Elliot 170 Willie McLaughlin 182 Endnotes 187 Index 197 Acknowledgements 201 VxeidiCe rt of the New South is published because of a fortunate coincidence of events and conditions. The Birmingham Historical Society, and in particular Society Trustee A Pat Camp, has long wanted to tell the story of Birmingham artists. A few years ago, librarian and Society Trustee Regina Amnion was writing descriptions of the collec­ tions of the Birmingham Public Library and was attracted to the paintings and papers of Carrie Hill, one of the principal women artists of Birmingham during the period 1890 to 1950. Regina wrote a short article on Carrie Hill for the Society's Newsletter. Dr. Julius Tinn Jr., grandnephew of Carrie Hill and a member of the Society, saw the Newsletter and called Regina and Pat to tell them of his collection of Carrie Hill paintings. Together with Regina and Pat, the late Martin Hames, Margaret Tivingston and I visited Julius in his home to view his Carrie Hill collection, and Julius agreed to help publish a book featuring the works of Carrie Hill and other Birmingham artists. Initially the book was to have described a large number of Birmingham artists, some of them active to the present day. As research on Carrie Hill and her contemporaries pro­ gressed, however, the history of the Birmingham Art Club emerged as a fascinating story and an important chapter in the history of Birmingham. The scope of the book narrowed to eight women artists who were important in establishing the Art Club in 1907 and con­ tinuing its work into the 1950s. The Birmingham Art Club sponsored art exhibits at the Birmingham Public Tibrary, helped stimulate a market for works of art by women artists, encouraged art in the public schools (donating paintings to many of them), lobbied for the establishment of the Birmingham Museum of Art, and acquired works of art for a perma­ nent collection. Interestingly, many of the source documents for the story of the Birmingham Art Club were collected by the Society in 1950 and deposited in the Birmingham Public Tibrary in the Hill Perguson Collection. An important collection of letters from artist Delia Dryer was located by Society research assistant Peggy Balch through an on-line search of the data base of the National Museum of Women and the Arts. The letters had been discovered, tran­ scribed, and distributed to the National Museum and other interested parties by Janie Johansen of Tallahassee, Plorida, grandniece of Delia Dryer. A search for existing works by the artists was initiated. An exhibit program found in the Hill Perguson Collection described a 1950 exhibit at the Birmingham Public Tibrary of etchings by Tucille Douglass then and now in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, which has agreed to lend the etchings for a second exhibit at the Library. In addition to the collections of the Metropolitan and Julius Linn Jr., works of art 4 -Art of the New South in several media (oil and watercolor paintings, etchings, pastels, painted china, pen and brush, and charcoal sketches) by seven of the eight women were found at the Birmingham Public Library, the Birmingham Museum of Art, the Alabama Pederation of Women's Clubs, the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, and in the private collections listed in the acknowledge­ ments at page 201, most notably relatives of the artists including Lesley Collins of Largo, Florida, Janie Johansen of Tallahassee, Florida, and Henry Yarborough of Akron, Ohio, all of whom went to great lengths and considerable expense to provide photographs of their treas­ ures. In many ways a book on art history is a grown-up's picture book, and we have been fortunate to have so many works of art made available to us for imaging. Most of the pic­ tures are due to the efforts of Marc Bondarenko who photographed all of the art work in the Birmingham area, making himself available to do the photography at odd hours in pri­ vate homes. A most fortunate coincidence was the discovery in the early fall of 2003 at the Birmingham Public Tibrary of "Women, Art, and the New South: From the Birmingham Art Club to the Birmingham Museum of Art," the thesis ofVicki Teigh Ingham submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the masters degree in art history from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, awarded while Vicki was an editor at Birmingham's Southern Progress Corporation. In her thesis,Vicki made the case for the importance of the Birmingham Art Club to the history of Birmingham and the establishment of the Birmingham Museum of Art, as well as the connections of some of the eight women artists to the international art world. After visits from her present home in Des Moines, Iowa, to Birmingham to see Julius Tinn's Carrie Hill paintings, Vicki agreed to write an expanded version of the story of the women artists of the Birmingham Art Club. Perhaps she was influenced to do so by the fact that she too has been a Birmingham woman artist with paint­ ings in galleries in Birmingham and other cities. Her path-finding thesis coupled with the additional research conducted by Vicki and the Birmingham Historical Society as well as the inclusion of images of many works of art by the women artists studied has resulted, we believe, in a compelling treatment of the subject. In addition to being an accomplished editor with many books to her credit, Vicki is a wonderful writer. She has a high energy level and writes speedily, attributes which permitted her to finish her work in a few months, working at night and on weekends while performing her daytime job as an editor. Her style is direct and unobtrusive, drawing the reader's attention to the subject matter, and relying for impact on her ability to draw out the interesting facts about her subject rather than on rhetorical devices. Vicki is also a good sport, and responded patiently to the Society's unusual team of mostly amateur editors who "edited the editor" in a group participation process that is likely unique to publishing (and made possible by the availability of e-mail for communicating edits rapidly and at all hours). Publications of the Birmingham Historical Society are a collaborative effort. Since the market for our books is not large enough to support all the costs of publication, the Society is grateful for the financial support it has received from Julius Tinn Jr., Pat and Ehney Camp, Teslie Collins, Tyndra Daniel, Stewart Dansby Dodie and Corbin Day, Henry Tynn,Jr., and Henry Yarborough. A great many other people have helped with the project, and I hope that Preface — 5 all of them have been listed in the acknowledgements at page 201. One of the strengths of the Society's publication program is the willingness of its members to participate in the edit­ ing process. Julius Linn Jr., an important writer and editor in the medical and medical research fields, not only inspired this book, supported it financially, and made available much of its content, he also helped research and edit the copy. Other editors include Regina Amnion, Stewart Dansby Alice Ottewilfjoe Strickland, and James White, III. Producing an art book with copy set in type (which must then be changed, more than once, to satisfy the editors), pictures reproduced with appropriate color values, and the whole laid out in a logical and aesthetically pleasing scheme requires a combination of tech­ nical skill and aesthetic judgment beyond most mortals. The Society has been fortunate to have had available through many years the services of Scott Fuller, graphic designer extraor­ dinaire, whose talent is reflected on every page. With all of this creative energy fully engaged, I acknowledge, as principal editor and publisher, that the merits of this book are due to the efforts of others, and that the remain­ ing deficiencies are my responsibility. Marjorie Tongenecker White Birmingham, Alabama June 17,2004 Introduction stablished in 1871,Birmingham was by 1900 the South's largest industrial workplace, OPPOSITE PAGE: with a bustling city center at the core of an industrial region. From across the South, View of the Birmingham City Center Looking South to the "Heaviest from the Northeast and foreign nations, businessmen, skilled craftsmen, and laborers Corner on Earth" at First Avenue E North and 20th Street and Across came seeking opportunity and work in the region's fast-growing mines and mills.
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