Gladys Maccabe facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Gladys Maccabe MBE HRUA ROI
Portrait of Gladys Maccabe by Max Maccabe
Born	Gladys Moore Chalmers 5 June 1918 Randalstown, County Antrim
Died	22 February 2018 (aged 99) Castlewellan
Nationality	British
Education	Belfast School of Art
Known for	Painting
Spouse(s)	Max Maccabe

Gladys Maccabe (born June 5, 1918 – died February 22, 2018) was a famous artist and journalist from Northern Ireland. She also started a special group called the Ulster Society of Women Artists to support women artists.

Early Life and Art School

Gladys Maccabe was born in Randalstown, County Antrim, on June 5, 1918. Her mother, Elizabeth, designed things for the linen industry. Her father, George Chalmers, was an artist who specialized in beautiful writing and decorating books. An old relative of hers, Sir George Chalmers, was also a painter in the 1700s.

Gladys went to school at Brookvale Collegiate in Belfast. When she was 16, one of her drawings was published in the Royal Drawing Society's magazine. She then studied sculpture and commercial art at the Belfast School of Art.

After her father passed away, she decided not to go study art in London. In 1941, she married Max Maccabe, who was also an artist and musician. They had known each other since childhood.

Exhibitions and Art Groups

Gladys and Max often showed their art together. Their first joint exhibition was in 1949 at the Kensington Art Gallery in London. They also had a show in Dublin that same year. Later, they exhibited at the Belfast Museum and Art Gallery in 1958.

In 1945, Gladys and Max joined other artists for an exhibition at the Belfast Museum. This show was organized by a group called the Artists' International Association.

Gladys also showed her work in other important exhibitions. In 1946, she was part of a group show in Belfast with experimental and modern art. Her paintings were also chosen for a touring exhibition of Contemporary Irish Painting that went to the United States and Canada.

In 1950, a portrait she painted of Her Majesty the Queen at Balmoral was shown at the Royal Ulster Academy's annual exhibition. She also displayed her art in London at the Leicester Galleries in 1956.

Gladys and Max were part of "The Contemporary Ulster Group." This group included other well-known artists like Dan O'Neill and George Campbell. Gladys even painted a portrait of artist William Conor in 1957.

Ulster Society of Women Artists

In 1957, Gladys felt that many talented women artists in Northern Ireland were not getting enough attention. So, with help from her friend Olive Henry, she started the Ulster Society of Women Artists. She invited ten artists to join, and she became the first President of the Society.

The Society's first big exhibition was held at the Belfast Museum and Art Gallery in 1959. In 2017, her son, Christopher Maccabe, attended the Society's sixtieth-anniversary exhibition to represent his mother.

Journalism and Media Work

During the 1960s, Gladys was also busy working as a fashion and arts writer. She wrote for newspapers like the Irish Independent and the Irish News. She also had columns in the Sunday Independent and the Ulster Tatler.

She was also a fashion reporter for the Belfast News Letter and BBC Northern Ireland. In 1993, she had a solo art show at the Emer Gallery in Belfast.

Gladys's Art Style

Gladys Maccabe often painted scenes of people gathering. These could be at horse races, fairs, markets, on the beach, or even in shops. She also painted beautiful flowers, still lifes, and abstract art.

Both Gladys and her husband, Max, were talented musicians. They would travel around Ulster, giving talks where they combined live painting with live music. Gladys played the piano while Max played the violin.

Art During Difficult Times

In 1969, during a period of conflict in Northern Ireland, Gladys felt moved to paint what she saw around her. That October, four of her paintings were shown in London at the Royal Institute of Oil Painters. These paintings had titles like Barricades, Blazing Warehouse, Petrol Bomb Sequel, and Funeral of a Victim.

She continued to show her work with the Royal Institute of Oil Painters, and in 1982, several of her pieces were part of their 100-year anniversary exhibition. At that time, she was the only Irish member of the Institute. In 1986, her self-portrait was added to the National Self-Portrait of Ireland Collection.

Later Exhibitions and Recognition

In 1989, a special exhibition of her work was held in Dublin. It was called Gladys Maccabe, A Lifetime of Art, The Retrospective, and it showed paintings she had made from 1935 to 1989.

She also exhibited her art in Paris, Scotland, and other important Irish art shows. She was a member of the Water Colour Society of Ireland.

Awards and Honors

Gladys received many awards for her art. In 1961, she became a Member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters. In 1979, she was awarded a gold medal by the Academia Italia delle Arte e del Lavoro.

The next year, she received an honorary MA degree from Queen's University Belfast. She was also an Honorary Academician of the Royal Ulster Academy and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. In 1984, she won the World Culture Prize.

On November 21, 2000, Queen Elizabeth II appointed Gladys a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for her great contributions to the arts.

Later Years and Legacy

Gladys Maccabe spent her final years in Newcastle and Castlewellan. She passed away on February 22, 2018, just a few months before her 100th birthday.

She was survived by her son Christopher, her daughter-in-law Jenny, three grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren. Her husband Max had passed away eighteen years before her, and her son Hugh died in 2017.

Gladys Maccabe's artworks are held in many important collections. These include The Ulster Museum, The Royal Ulster Academy, The Arts Council of Ireland Collection, Arts Council of Northern Ireland, The Imperial War Museum, The National Self-Portrait Collection of Ireland, and National Gallery of Ireland.