Anne Montgomery (artist) facts for kids

Anne Montgomery (1908-1991) was an Australian artist. She was known for her paintings, prints, and murals. She also taught art. For many years, her work was very popular. She showed her art in many places. Her art was bought by public art collections. Anne Montgomery was part of a group of artists in Melbourne. Their work was sometimes less noticed than other art groups at the time.

Early Life and Art Influences

Anne Montgomery grew up in Melbourne, Australia. Her family was very involved in the art world. Her father, William Montgomery, was a famous stained glass artist. He was also the head of the Victorian Artists Society. He was a trustee of the National Gallery of Victoria. Their home showed their love for art and design.

William Montgomery was good friends with Lindsay Bernard Hall. Hall was an artist and gallery director. Anne spent a lot of time with Hall's children. They even went to summer painting camps together.

Anne's mother, May Rowed, was also an artist. She had studied at the National Gallery of Victoria Art School. Even after marriage, she stayed in touch with many women artists. These included Josephine Muntz Adams and Jessie Traill. May Montgomery also designed costumes and painted flowers. Anne and her mother even designed masks together for a big ball in Melbourne in 1932.

Anne's older half-brother, Mont Montgomery, died in World War One. Despite this, Anne grew up seeing many active women artists. They became her role models. Later, they became her colleagues. Anne started art classes at the National Gallery of Victoria School. She went there before finishing high school. She studied at the Melbourne Girls Grammar. Anne came in second place for a special scholarship in 1932.

Mural Painting Projects

Anne Montgomery wanted to use her art skills in practical ways. She also needed to support her mother. So, she studied architecture. She also took classes in mural painting. Her teacher was Napier Waller.

In 1934, Anne was part of a group of students. They painted murals for the Grossi Florentino restaurant in Melbourne. This is one of her few murals that still exists. She also led a group of students. They painted murals for a children's hospital ward in 1934. The art supplies were given by Jessie Traill.

Anne painted many murals from the 1930s to the 1950s. Most of them have been lost. This happened when buildings were torn down or changed. For example, she painted large scenes of Greek Gods. These were for the Civic Theatre Ashburton around 1947-48.

By 1935, Montgomery started teaching art. She taught at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. She taught watercolor and drawing techniques. She stayed there for 39 years. In the late 1930s, she also took classes with George Bell. His teaching influenced her art later on.

Creating Prints

After finishing art school, Anne spent time with Jessie Traill. She learned how to make etchings. She even visited Traill's studio in Harkaway. Anne tried many of Traill's new techniques. She experimented with different ways to ink the plates. She also explored colored effects and aquatint.

Anne Montgomery's prints often had a fantasy style. They were decorative and referenced Art Nouveau and Art Deco. In 1933, she had an exhibition with Helen Ogilvie. This decorative style also showed in her paintings on silk. She also painted on the back of glass plates. Many of these glass paintings still exist. She later illustrated children's books with a similar style. She also made some linocuts in the 1930s. It seems she stopped making prints after World War Two.

Success in the 1930s

In the 1930s, Anne Montgomery became a rising star. In 1933, artist Harold Herbert called her "one of the white hopes" of Australian art. She showed her work in many art groups. These included the Melbourne Society of Women Painters and Sculptors and the Victorian Artists Society.

She opened a studio with Lucy Newell. This studio became a popular meeting place for young artists. Artists like Treania Smith and Geoff Jones visited. William Pate remembered that they had sketching sessions there. In 1935, Montgomery, Newell, and Traill toured Tasmania.

Anne also had a joint exhibition with potter Klytie Pate in 1943. It was very well-received. By 1940, her art was bought by important galleries. These included the National Gallery of Victoria and the Howard Hinton collection.

Later Years and Art Style

Anne Montgomery's public presence changed in the 1940s. She became more connected with George Bell. Bell had different ideas about art. His style was called "hard-edged pictorial elements" and "flat synthetic cubism." This new style greatly changed Anne's earlier art.

She was a dedicated student of Bell. She often created full artworks for his assignments. Her colors became darker and more dramatic. This sometimes gave her landscapes a surreal feel. She painted in the Victorian alps with friends like Lucy Newell. She continued painting at Mount Hotham in 1954. She also started using pastels. These often had bright colors on dark paper. In 1959, a new building for the Lyceum Club opened. It included a large mural of Magnolias by Montgomery.

After the war, Montgomery worked with many famous modern artists. These included Dorothy Mary Braund and Constance Stokes. She also drew portraits of some of these women artists. Her portrait of Guelda Pyke is now in the State Library of Victoria.

After George Bell died in 1966, his style became less popular. Anne Montgomery's public recognition also began to fade. Her work slowly returned to her earlier decorative style. She continued to paint until the late 1980s. She often painted the coastline near her home in Sandringham. She also painted flowers like magnolias and banksias. Her last known works were in exhibitions in 1989 and 1990.

More recently, people have become interested in Bell's students again. Anne Montgomery's work has returned to public view. She was featured in books about the George Bell School. Her work was also shown in exhibitions after her death. Her art has been bought by more public collections. These include Ballarat, Bendigo, and the National Gallery of Australia.