Edith Susan Boyd facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Edith Susan Boyd
Nasturtiums, by Emmanuel Phillips Fox, featuring Edith Susan Gerard Anderson (1912)
Born	Edith Susan Gerard Anderson (1880-02-16)16 February 1880 Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Died	31 March 1961(1961-03-31) (aged 81) East Burwood, Victoria, Australia
Nationality	Australian
Education	Slade School (London)
Occupation	painter, dramatist, drawer, model
Notable work	Mary had a little lamb, Mimi, Illustration, The song of the morrow, Water colours, Blue mountains, Margaret, Portrait, Sunlight, A highlander
Style	Impressionist
Spouse(s)	Theodore Penleigh Boyd (15 October 1912 – 27 November 1923)
Children	3

Edith Susan Gerard Anderson (born February 16, 1880 – died March 31, 1961) was an Australian artist. She was a painter and also wrote plays. After she married, she became known as Edith Susan Boyd. She was also famous for being a model for the artist Emanuel Phillips Fox. You can see her in his 1912 painting, Nasturtiums.

Edith's Early Life

Edith Susan Gerard Anderson was born in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. This was on February 16, 1880. She was the youngest child in her family. Her mother's name was Edith, and her grandmother was Scottish.

Her father, John Gerard Anderson, was the head of the Department of Public Instruction. This department was in charge of education in Queensland. Her brother, Arthur, became a well-known doctor. Her oldest sister, Maud, was one of the first women to get a Bachelor of Arts degree. She studied at the University of Sydney. This made Maud possibly the first woman in Queensland to graduate from university.

Life in Paris and Marriage

Edith lived in Paris with the artist Emanuel Phillips Fox and his wife, Ethel Carrick. Edith modeled for Fox in his studio. He also gave her painting lessons. He taught her the impressionistic style. This was a style he learned in art school in Melbourne.

Edith met her future husband, Theodore Penleigh Boyd, in Paris. He was also an Australian painter. Fox introduced them because Boyd's studio was next to Fox's. Boyd thought Edith was "intelligent as well as beautiful." He felt they were a perfect match.

Edith and Theodore married in Paris on October 15, 1912. Fox walked Edith down the aisle. This showed how close he was to the couple. After getting married, Edith Susan Gerard Anderson changed her name to Edith Susan Boyd.

Returning to Australia

After their wedding, Edith and Theodore went on their honeymoon. They visited places like Rome and Venice. In 1913, they came back to Melbourne, Australia. Their first child, Pamela, was born there but sadly passed away soon after.

In 1914, the family moved to Warrandyte. Penleigh built a home studio for Edith and their children. They called it The Robins. Their second child, John Beckett Boyd, was born in 1915. He was often called Pat Boyd.

In 1917, Penleigh Boyd joined the army. Edith was left to care for their children alone for some months. Penleigh made sure that most of his pay went to support Edith and their children.

Penleigh was injured during the war. He was gassed in Ypres in 1917. This caused him lasting health problems. Edith helped him after he returned to Australia in March 1918.

Challenges and Changes

On January 3, 1919, Edith had her second son, Robin Boyd. He grew up to be a very important Australian architect and writer.

In 1922, Edith and her family sold "The Robins." They moved to Sydney, Australia. Penleigh was asked to help organize a big art exhibition. Because of this, the family moved to England to choose paintings. However, Penleigh returned to Australia in June 1923 without Edith. Their marriage was going through a tough time.

Edith and her children returned to Australia on November 24, 1923. Penleigh met them at Port Melbourne. They started arguing right away. A few days later, on November 28, 1923, Penleigh died. He crashed his car near Warragul. Edith buried him at Brighton Cemetery in Victoria.

Life After Penleigh's Death

After her husband died, Edith had some money from his estate. This included money from selling "The Robins" and some paintings. She also received money from her father and an allowance from Penleigh's father. This allowed her to support her sons without needing to work. This was helpful even during the Great Depression.

However, Edith continued to write plays. She was very interested in them. She moved to an apartment in Toorak. Later, in 1927, she bought a brick house in Malvern East.

Edith's Career as an Artist and Model

Modeling for Emanuel Phillips Fox

Edith Susan Gerard Anderson studied at the Slade School in London in 1905. She also lived in Paris. There, she modeled for the artist Emanuel Phillips Fox. She was known for her bright red hair. This hair was a main feature in many of Fox's paintings. Fox was drawn to her "rich auburn hair and grey-green eyes." These were popular features at the time. Many of the paintings she modeled for were done in Fox's studio courtyard in Paris.

She appeared in many of Fox's paintings in 1912. These include The green parasol, On the balcony, and Nasturtiums. She might also have been in The bathing hour in 1909.

Nasturtiums Painting

Nasturtiums is the most famous painting that Edith Susan Gerard Anderson modeled for. She might have posed for it as early as September 1912. In this painting, Edith is wearing a purple dress, a black hat, and gloves. She is reading in a garden chair. Behind her are nasturtium leaves and flowers growing on a trellis. Fox painted this in Paris in 1912. This painting shows a quiet, home-focused life in Paris during a time called the Belle Époque.

Edith as an Artist

Even after marrying into the Boyd family, Edith continued her own art career. She painted and drew. She had shown many of her paintings in an exhibition in 1910. This was at the Royal Queensland Art Society.

Edith's Artworks

Some of Edith Susan Gerard Anderson's well-known artworks include:

• Mary had a little lamb
• Mimi
• The song of the morrow
• Water colors
• Blue mountains
• Margaret
• Portrait
• Sunlight
• Highlander

Later Life and Passing

In her later years, Edith wrote several plays. These plays were performed by theater groups. One play, Three Roses, was performed in 1940. She also wrote radio plays for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Edith Susan Gerard Anderson passed away in East Burwood, Australia. This was on March 31, 1961. Three of Emanuel Phillips Fox's paintings of Edith are still owned by her family. The famous Nasturtiums painting was bought by the Art Gallery of New South Wales in 2011. It was a tribute to Margaret Olley, a Sydney painter and supporter of the gallery.

See also

• Australian art

Gallery