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LETTICE, Maude Mary
- Born
- Victoria. B.C., 1879
- Died
- Victoria, B.C., 1976
- Biography synopsis
- Although there is little information about her art training, it is known that Lettice took lessons with members of the Victoria art community including Gladys Woodward and John Kyle, as well as Emily Carr, Josephine Crease, and Margaret Kitto. She was a founding member of the Island Arts and Craft Society (Victoria) where her work was included in almost every annual exhibition from 1910 to 1941 and again in 1947. Her early paintings adhered to the approach of British watercolourists, but she later incorporated more modern techniques under the influence of Max Maynard, Jack Shadbolt, and Emily Carr. In 1932 her work was shown in the “Modern Room” of the Island Arts and Crafts Society exhibition which included works of Emily Carr. She served as a long-time member of the executive committee of the Island Arts and Crafts Society, and was involved in the decision to change the name to Victoria Sketch Club; she was elected president in 1958. In 1959, Lettice was made a life member in appreciation of her service to the club, and she was named Woman of the Year during Women's International Year in 1975. In addition to exhibitions in galleries in Victoria and Vancouver, her paintings were shown in private galleries in Toronto and Halifax. Her work was also included in the annual B.C. Artists exhibitions at the Vancouver Art Gallery, from 1932-1949, 1951-1952, and 1955-1956. Her works are held at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and the collection of the B.C. Archives.
- Media used
- Painting
- Watercolour
- Memberships
- Island Arts and Crafts Society
- Victoria Sketch Club, 1958 President
- Federation of Canadian Artists
- File & Archive locations
- Montreal Museum of Fine Arts / Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal, QC
- British Columbia Archives
- Canadian Women Artists History Initiative Documentation Centre, QC
- BIBLIOGRAPHY
Writings about- "Rebels and Realists: 100 Years of the Victoria Sketch Club Victoria, B.C.: University of Victoria, 2009
http://legacy.uvic.ca/gallery/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/Rebels-and-Realists-Catalogue.pdf - "Canadian Artists Unite to Boycott National Gallery." Montreal Gazette 8 Dec. 1932
- "Noted Artists Offer Paintings For Red Cross." Vancouver Daily Province Nov. 1942
- “City Sketch Club Wins Group Prize in W. Vancouver.” Times Colonist 15 June 1957
- “Obituary.” The Daily Colonist 11 Apr. 1976
- Amos, Robert. "The Wonders of Watercolours." Times Colonist 07 Feb 2016: D.5
- Arts, Island, Crafts Club, and Island Arts and Crafts Club.. Catalogue of the Fifth Annual Exhibition, Island Arts and Crafts Club, to Be Held November 19th, 20th and 21st, 1914 Alxandra Club, 1914
http://www.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.76881/ - Chambarlain, Adrian. "Watercolours get their Due at Art Gallery Exhibit." Times Colonist 27 Jan. 2016
http://www.timescolonist.com/entertainment/watercolours-get-their-due-at-art-gallery-exhibit-4631485 - House, Maria Newberry. Plantae Occidentalis: 200 Years of Botanical Art in British Columbia Vancouver: Botanical Garden University of British Columbia, 1979
- Johnson, Christina. "Emily Carr and those around her." (exhibition review) RACAR Revue d'art canadien. Canadian Art Review 5.2 (1978-79):130-131
http://id.erudit.org/iderudit/1077018ar - Lover, John Gordon. The Victoria Sketch Club: A Centennial Celebration, 1909-2009 Victoria, B.C.: Victoria Sketch Club, 2008
- Tippett, Maria. Contemporaries of Emily Carr Burnaby: Simon Fraser Art Gallery, 1974
- Tippett, Maria and Douglas Cole. From Desolation to Splendour: Changing Perceptions of the British Columbia Landscape Toronto: Clarke, Irwin and Company Ltd, 1977
- Tuele, Nicholas, and Christina Johnson-Dean. British Columbia Women Artists, 1885-1985 Victoria: Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, 1985
