Ithell Colquhoun facts for kids

Ithell Colquhoun (/ˈaɪθəl kəˈhuːn/ 9 October 1906 – 11 April 1988) was a British painter, writer, and poet. Her art style was linked to surrealism. In the late 1930s, Colquhoun was part of the British Surrealist Group. She later left because she wanted to continue her studies of mystical and spiritual ideas.

Colquhoun was born in Shillong, British India. She grew up in the United Kingdom. After studying at the Slade School of Art, she lived in Paris for a short time. She then moved back to London. She spent the last part of her life in Cornwall, England, where she passed away in 1988.

Her Early Life and Art Journey

Margaret Ithell Colquhoun was born in Shillong, British India. Her parents were Henry Archibald Colebrooke Colquhoun and Georgia Frances Ithell Manley. She went to school in Rodwell, near Weymouth, Dorset. Later, she attended Cheltenham Ladies' College. At age 17, she became interested in mystical studies. This happened after reading about Aleister Crowley's Abbey of Thelema.

Colquhoun studied at Cheltenham School of Art starting in 1925. She then went to Slade School of Art in London in 1927. There, she was taught by Henry Tonks and Randolph Schwabe. In 1929, she won the Slade's Summer Composition Prize. This was for her painting Judith Showing the Head of Holofernes. This painting was shown at the Royal Academy in 1931. Even with her studies, Colquhoun mostly taught herself how to paint.

Exploring Surrealism and Travel

After leaving the Slade in 1931, Colquhoun traveled for several years. She set up an art studio in Paris. Here, she first learned about surrealism. She read Peter Neagoe's essay What is Surrealism?. During the 1930s, she also spent time in Greece, Corsica, and Tenerife.

Colquhoun had three paintings shown in Paris in 1933. She also had one work shown at the Royal Society of Scotland in 1934. In 1936, she had her first solo art show. This was at the Cheltenham Art Gallery. She displayed 91 artworks there. Another solo exhibition followed in London at the Fine Art Society in the same year.

Colquhoun's interest in surrealism deepened after seeing Salvador Dalí lecture in 1936

Colquhoun's interest in surrealism grew stronger. This happened after she saw Salvador Dalí give a lecture in 1936. It was at the International Exhibition of Surrealism in London. In 1937, she joined the Artists' International Association. In the late 1930s, she became more involved with the surrealist movement in Britain. She wrote articles for the London Bulletin in 1938 and 1939. She also visited André Breton in Paris in 1939. She joined the British Surrealist Group that same year.

In 1939, she also showed her art with Roland Penrose at the Mayor Gallery. She displayed 14 oil paintings and two art objects. After only one year, Colquhoun left the British Surrealist Group in 1940. This was because she would not stop her studies of mystical topics. The group wanted its members to only be part of their group. This led to her art not being shown in other surrealist exhibitions. But she kept working with surrealist ideas.

Later Life and Art Legacy

In the 1940s, Colquhoun met and started a relationship with Toni del Renzio. He was an artist and art critic. They got married in 1943. Their art studio in Bedford Park, London, became a place for friends and other artists to gather. The marriage later ended, and they divorced in 1947. From 1945, Colquhoun lived and worked in Hampstead.

In 1946, Colquhoun bought an art studio near Penzance in Cornwall. She split her time between there and London. In 1957, she moved to Paul, Cornwall. She lived in Cornwall for the rest of her life.

She had solo art shows in 1947 at the Mayor Gallery. In 1972, she had one at Exeter Museum and Art Gallery. Another was in 1976 at the Newlyn Orion Gallery.

Colquhoun continued to create art until about 1983. She spent her final years in a care home. She passed away in 1988. She left the rights to her artworks to The Samaritans. She left her mystical writings to the Tate. Her other art went to the National Trust. In 2019, the Tate bought the National Trust's collection of Colquhoun's works.

Her Art Style and Techniques

Ithell Colquhoun was known as a surrealist artist. She identified with surrealism throughout her life. She used many automatic techniques in her art. These are methods where the artist tries to let their subconscious guide their hand. This was a key part of surrealism. She even invented some new automatic techniques herself.

Themes in Her Paintings

Colquhoun had an early interest in biology. Studies of plants and flowers were a common theme in her art. Many of her early notebooks had very detailed drawings of plants. Her early works included large images of flowers. These were painted very realistically.

Her early art often showed strong women from myths and Bible stories. Examples include Judith Showing the Head of Holofernes (1929) and Susanna and the Elders (1930). These might have been inspired by similar works by the artist Artemisia Gentileschi.

Some of her works have been called "dark" or "mysterious" in style. In 1939, she created Tepid Waters (Rivières Tièdes). This painting was shown at her solo exhibition that year. The painting is based on a church in Corsica. It might hint at the Spanish Civil War.

In the 1940s, Colquhoun began to create art about the mind and dreams. Her interest in psychology and dreams also connected her to the Surrealist movement.

Automatic Art Techniques

Colquhoun started trying automatic techniques in 1939. She used many different materials and methods. These included decalcomania (pressing paint between surfaces), fumage (drawing with smoke), frottage (rubbing over textured surfaces), and collage.

She also created new techniques. These included superautomatism, stillomancy, parsemage, and entopic graphomania. She wrote about these in her article "The Mantic Stain". Automatic art remained very important to her. After she left the British surrealist movement, it also became a big part of her spiritual activities. In 1948, she showed automatic techniques on British television. This was on a BBC show called The Eye of the Artist. In 1951, she published another article, "Children of the Mantic Stain".

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Colquhoun focused more on collages than paintings. Her last major art show was in 1976 at the Newlyn Orion Gallery. It showed many collages. Many of these were inspired by the collages of Kurt Schwitters.

Her Literary Works

Colquhoun was also a talented writer.

Between 1942 and 1944, she gave several poetry readings. These were at the International Arts Centre in London. Toni del Renzio organized these events.

In 1955, she published The Crying of the Wind. This was a travel book about her trips in Ireland. It included some surreal-style passages and her interest in Celtic history. In 1961, her book The Goose of Hermogenes was published.

She published poetry collections like Grimoire of the Entangled Thicket (1973) and Osmazone (1983). She also wrote travel stories about Ireland and Cornwall. Colquhoun published critical writings and automatic prose in the London Bulletin. She also wrote essays on automatism, such as "The Mantic Stain". This article discussed automatism in Britain. It led her to give lectures at places like the Oxford Art Society in the early 1950s.

In 1953, she appeared on the BBC television show Fantastic Art.

See also

In Spanish: Ithell Colquhoun para niños