Anne Yeats facts for kids

Anne Butler Yeats (born February 26, 1919 – died July 4, 2001) was a talented Irish artist. She was known for her paintings and for designing costumes and sets for plays.

Anne Yeats's Early Life

Growing Up in a Creative Family

Anne Yeats was born in Dublin, Ireland, on February 26, 1919. Her father was the famous poet William Butler Yeats. Her mother was Georgie Hyde-Lees. Anne came from a very artistic family. Her uncle was the painter Jack B. Yeats. Her aunts, Lily Yeats and Elizabeth Corbet Yeats, were also artists. They were part of the Arts and Crafts movement in Ireland. They worked with special presses like the Dun Emer Press and Cuala Press. Anne's brother, Michael Yeats, later became a politician. Her family affectionately called her "feathers."

Childhood and Education

Anne spent her first three years living in different places. She lived in Ballylee, County Galway, and also in Oxford. In 1922, her family moved to Dublin. As a child, Anne was often sick. She spent three years in hospitals. Despite this, she showed early artistic talent. In 1923, her aunt Elizabeth taught her brush drawing. This helped her win first prize in the RDS National Art competition. She won this competition twice, in 1925 and 1926. From 1928 to 1930, she attended a boarding school in Switzerland.

Anne Yeats's Theatre Work

Starting at the Abbey Theatre

Anne Yeats studied at the Royal Hibernian Academy school from 1933 to 1936. When she was just 16, she started working at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. This was in 1936, and she was an assistant stage designer. In 1937, she went to Paris to study theatrical design. She spent four months learning from Paul Colin. By age 18, she was designing costumes for plays.

Designing for Famous Plays

At the Abbey Theatre, Anne designed sets and costumes for many plays. She worked on her father's plays, like The Resurrection and On Baile's Strand. In 1938, she designed the first production of her father's play Purgatory. Her designs for Purgatory were very successful. Her father, W.B. Yeats, even praised them. He said her designs were "greatly admired." Purgatory was the last play her father saw performed.

Anne also designed for her uncle Jack Yeats's play, Harlequin's Positions. She was promoted to head of design at the Abbey Theatre in 1939. She stayed in this role until 1941. One of her last designs was for her father's final play, The Death of Cuchulain. This was performed in 1949. Anne designed for many other theatres too. These included The Peacock, The Cork Opera House, and The Olympia.

Plays Anne Designed For

Anne Yeats worked on several productions at the Peacock Theatre. These include:

• Alarm Among the Clerks (1937)
• The Phoenix (1937)
• Harlequin's Positions (1939)
• The Wild Cat (1940)
• Cavaliero (The Life of a Hawk) (1948)

Anne Yeats's Painting Career

Becoming a Full-Time Painter

In 1941, Anne decided to focus on painting full-time. She briefly studied at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art. She liked to experiment with different materials, like watercolour and wax. Her painting style was unique and expressive. She often painted everyday life and people.

Book Illustrations

Anne also designed many book covers. For over twenty years, she created covers for the Irish-language publisher Sáirséal agus Dill. She also illustrated books for famous writers. These included Denis Devlin, Thomas Kinsella, and Louis MacNeice. She worked with other young designers, like Louis le Brocquy.

Anne Yeats's Legacy

Exhibitions and Donations

Anne Yeats's work has been celebrated in major art exhibitions. The Royal Hibernian Academy held a special show of her art in 1995. The National Gallery of Ireland also had a show in 2002. Anne was very generous with her family's art. She gave her uncle Jack B. Yeats's sketchbooks to the National Gallery of Ireland. This led to the creation of the Yeats Museum there. Later, her brother Michael donated Anne's own sketchbooks to the museum.

Work in Collections

Anne Yeats's art can be found in many important collections:

• The National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin
• The Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery, Dublin
• The Ulster Museum, Belfast
• Trinity College, Dublin
• Model Arts and Niland Gallery, Sligo
• The Arts Council of Ireland