Beatrice Kate Hayllar (1 September 1864, in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

– 1959) was a British painter and nurse, best remembered for her detailed

floral Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants (Flowering plant, angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls in ...

and

still life A still life (: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly wikt:inanimate, inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or artificiality, human-m ...

paintings. During her lifetime, her works were exhibited at the

Royal Academy of Arts The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

, the

Royal Society of British Artists The Royal Society of British Artists (RBA) is a British art body established in 1823 as the Society of British Artists, as an alternative to the Royal Academy. History The RBA commenced with twenty-seven members, and took until 1876 to reach fi ...

, the

Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours The Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours (RI), initially called the New Society of Painters in Water Colours, is one of the societies in the Federation of British Artists, based in the Mall Galleries in London. History In 1831, the ...

and the Arthur Tooth & Sons Gallery. Posthumously, her work has been auctioned at

Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, and it has additional salerooms in New York, Paris, Hong Kong, Milan, Geneva, Shan ...

Life and career

Hayllar was born in

Mecklenburgh Square Mecklenburgh Square is a Grade II listed square in Bloomsbury, London. The square and its garden were part of the Foundling Estate, a residential development of 1792–1825 on fields surrounding and owned by the Foundling Hospital. The square was ...

, but spent most of her childhood at the family house, Castle Priory, in

Wallingford Wallingford may refer to: People Surname * Darcy Wallingford (fl. 1980s), Canadian swimmer * Jesse Wallingford (1872–1944), British sport shooter and New Zealand army officer * Sidney Wallingford (1898–1978), British-born aviator and New Zeal ...

on the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

(now

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

), where she and her sisters received training in art from their father. The house and its surroundings provided inspiration for the majority of Hayllar's paintings, as well as those of her sisters. She was the youngest daughter of

James Hayllar James Hayllar (1829–1920) was an England, English genre painting, genre, Portrait painting, portrait and Landscape painting, landscape painter. Four of his daughters Edith Hayllar, Jessica Hayllar, Mary Hayllar and Kate Hayllar were also not ...

, a prominent Victorian artist, and Ellen Hayllar. She had four sisters and four brothers, among whom Jessica Hayllar,

Edith Hayllar Edith Hayllar (1860–1948) was a British artist born to James Hayllar, an acclaimed Victorian artist known for his genre paintings. Edith Hayllar had four brothers and four sisters, of whom, Jessica Hayllar (1858–1940), Mary Hayllar (1863–1 ...

and Mary Hayllar also became accomplished artists. When her mother died in 1900, Hayllar stopped painting and devoted herself to nursing. She moved to Bournemouth with her father and sister Jessica, and later, her sister Mary. She never married and devoted herself to caring for her family and friends. Before her early retirement as a professional artist, Hayllar had twelve works displayed at the

(RA) from 1885 to 1898, the first of these, ''The Old Brocaded Gown'', was bought by the Princess of Wales, later

Queen Alexandra Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was List of British royal consorts, queen-consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 Januar ...

, wife of King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second child ...

, and six were displayed at the

from 1883 to 1889. She also exhibited at the

and the Arthur Tooth & Sons Gallery.

also bought a drawing, ''Tommy's Orange'', which Hayllar had exhibited with the

in 1883. Unlike her older sisters Jessica, Edith, and Mary, who mostly painted interior scenes of Castle Priory, Hayllar focused on still lifes, often incorporating floral elements and exotic souvenirs from foreign lands. Her surviving works include ''Still life with a Canton famille rose teapot and camellias'' and ''A Thing of Beauty is a Joy Forever''. The latter work was well received when it was exhibited at the RA in 1890, as indicated by a report in the local press: It was sold by

in 2003 from the Forbes Collection of Victorian Pictures and Works of Art for . Hayllar died in 1959 at the age of 95.

References

British painters 19th-century British women painters British artists British women artists {{DEFAULTSORT:Hayllar, Kate 1864 births 1959 deaths