Jean Osborne facts for kids

Jean Osborne was a talented artist from Northern Ireland. She was born on 21 February 1926 and passed away on 9 July 1965, at the age of 39. Jean mostly created art using oil paints and watercolours.

Jean Osborne's Early Life

Jean Osborne was born in Larne, County Antrim, a port town. Her father, William Meikle, worked at Harland and Wolff, a famous shipbuilding company.

From a young age, Jean loved art. When she was twenty, a well-known artist named Paul Nietsche noticed her talent in Belfast. She received a special scholarship from the Ministry of Education to continue her art studies.

Before moving to London in 1947, Jean worked briefly as a seamstress. In London, she took evening classes at Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts. There, she earned an Intermediate Certificate in Arts and Crafts in 1950. She was greatly influenced by her teacher, John Minton. After this, Jean returned to Belfast to complete her National Diploma in Art and Design.

Her Artistic Journey

Soon after arriving in London in 1947, Jean met another artist, Dennis H Osborne, in an art class. They got married in February 1948, just a few months after meeting.

In 1951, Jean was chosen to show her art at an important exhibition called Contemporary Ulster Art. This show was held at the Belfast Museum and Art Gallery as part of the Festival of Britain. Her work was displayed alongside other leading artists from Ulster, including Kathleen Bridle and John Luke.

That summer, Jean and Dennis spent time in County Donegal. They were guests of Henry Plumer McIlhenny, a wealthy art collector, at his home near Glenveagh Castle.

The next year, Jean had two paintings in the London Group's yearly exhibition. This was held at the New Burlington Galleries. She exhibited alongside famous artists like her mentor John Minton, Victor Pasmore, and Vanessa Bell. Young sculptors like Elizabeth Frink also showed their work there.

Before moving to Canada in late 1953, Jean also showed her art with groups like the New English Art Club and the Young Contemporaries. On November 20, 1953, she sailed from Ireland to Canada on the TSS Olympia. She arrived in Niagara Falls eight days later, joining her husband who had moved there six months earlier.

In January 1955, Jean had a joint art show with her husband and David Partridge at the Art Gallery in St. Catharine’s Public Library.

To celebrate her first year in Canada, Jean showed two paintings at the Art Gallery of Hamilton's 6th Annual Winter Exhibition. One was an oil painting called The Harmonica Player, and the other was a portrait of her close friend, Barbara Hunter, a poet. Jean created many artworks and exhibited widely across Canada in the following years. She showed four more works at the Art Gallery of Hamilton's Winter Exhibitions in 1957, 1958, and 1960.

Jean joined the Colour and Form Society in 1955. She showed her art at their yearly exhibitions in Toronto in 1956 and 1957. In 1957, Jean also displayed works in the Ontario Society of Artists 85th Annual Exhibition. That autumn, she returned to the Art Gallery of Hamilton for a joint exhibition with Dennis and Walter Robert Hickling, a well-known composer and artist.

In 1958, Jean and Dennis had a joint exhibition at the Thielsen Gallery in London, Ontario. Before leaving St. Catharine's after six years, Jean showed her work at the 4th Annual Winnipeg Art Show and the 33rd Annual Exhibition of the Canadian Society of Painters in Watercolour. Jean's health was not good, which led the young family to return to the United Kingdom in 1959.

After returning to the UK, Jean exhibited in the Third Exhibition of Flower Paintings in London in 1960. This show was hosted by the Royal Society of Painters in Watercolour.

The Osbornes moved to Portadown, County Armagh, where Dennis got a teaching job. In 1962, Dennis became Head of Art at Lisnagarvey High School, so they bought a house in Lisburn. Their neighbor was the artist Colin Middleton, and the two families became very close. The Osbornes exhibited alongside Middleton at the New Gallery Painters Exhibition in 1963.

Her Legacy Lives On

Jean Osborne passed away in Lisburn Hospital on July 9, 1965, at the age of 39. Her death was caused by a brain tumour, which had led her to return to Ulster six years earlier. She was survived by her husband Dennis and their daughter, Moya.

Kenneth Jamison, who was the Director of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, wrote that Jean and Dennis "both made significant contributions" to art in Ulster. However, Dennis often said that Jean was the more skilled artist of the two.

In the autumn of 1965, Jean was honored as an 'invited artist' at the Royal Ulster Academy of Arts 86th Annual Exhibition. Two of her paintings were shown after her death, including a self-portrait called Growth, which showed her tumour.

In 1967, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland held a special exhibition to remember Jean's life and work. Her husband wrote the introduction for the exhibition's catalogue. The Ulster Society of Women Artists also paid tribute to her in their annual show in November 1967.

A W Bowyer reviewed Jean's exhibition and commented: "There is more than enough to show how much was lost to us through the early death of this gifted artist."

Jean Osborne's artworks are now part of many private collections. They are also held in public collections like the Ulster Museum and the Armagh County Museum.

Her Family Life

Jean Osborne gave birth to her daughter in 1957.