Glasgow Society of Women Artists

In 1882 eight women, some of the first female students at the Glasgow School of Art met and formed a Society known as the Glasgow Society of Lady Artists. The original eight were soon joined by others similarly enthusiastic to see suitable recognition given to women in the arts. By 1895 through assiduous enterprise, sufficient funding had been raised for the ladies involved to buy 5 Blythswood Square, Glasgow which became the first Women Artists' Residential Club in Great Britain and was then known as the Glasgow Society of Lady Artists Club. Catastrophe struck when in May 1901 the building and much of its content was destroyed by fire. The gallery was rebuilt in less than 18 months and by October 1902, it was ready to hold exhibitions. The Club prospered for another 64 years, remaining at the original location until 1971. Due to a shortage of funds, the building was then sold to the SAC and the Society was dissolved. Through the tenacious efforts of a few women members, the club was revived in 1975 as the Glasgow Society of Women Artists. A Centenary Exhibition was held in the Collins Gallery, Strathclyde University in 1982. The Society continues to flourish well into the millennium offering a chance for women artists to display a variety of artistic disciplines. Its members past and recent include Jessie M. King, Agnes Raeburn, embroideress Ann Macbeth, Katherine Cameron, De Courcy L. Dewar, Hannah Frank and Eleanor Moore.

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Glasgow Society of Women Artists: Logo
Number of Artists referenced: 79