Anne Finlay (1898–1963) was a Scottish artist.

Education and artistic career

Finlay spent her early years in Edinburgh and attended school in Manor Place in the city, where she studied French. She studied at the Edinburgh College of Art from 1917 to 1920. She studied drawing and painting but did not obtain her diploma. Finlay regularly exhibited at the

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

in London from 1932 onwards, the

Royal Scottish Academy The Royal Scottish Academy (RSA) is the country’s national academy of art. It promotes contemporary Scottish art. The Academy was founded in 1826 by eleven artists meeting in Edinburgh. Originally named the Scottish Academy, it became the ...

and as part of the Society of Women Artists between 1934 and 1956. She was part of the circle of friends who comprised the artists community in Edinburgh at the time. The group included

Dorothy Johnstone Dorothy Johnstone (1892–1980) was a Scottish painter and watercolourist. Life Johnstone was born in Edinburgh in 1892 and grew up in Napier Road, near the Gothic Mansion, Rockville. Her father, landscape artist George Whitton Johnstone RSA ...

, Cecile Walton, Eric Robertson,

David Macbeth Sutherland David Macbeth Sutherland (1883-20 September 1973) was a Scottish artist mainly known for his landscapes and portraits paintings and for his long tenure as the Director of Gray's School of Art in Aberdeen. Biography Sutherland was born in Wic ...

and

Adam Bruce Thomson Adam Bruce Thomson OBE, RSA, PRSW (22 February 1885 – 4 December 1976) or ‘Adam B’ as he was often called at Edinburgh College of Art, was a painter perhaps best known for his oil and water colour landscape paintings, particularly ...

. A portrait of Finlay by her friend and fellow artist Johnstone featured in the posters and promotional materials associated with the Modern Scottish Women Exhibition at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art in 2015–16. The portrait is owned by Aberdeen Art Gallery She was described as attractive and vivacious, with a 'certain disregard for propriety' and posed as a model for several of the artists in the group. Her nickname was 'Spook'. Finlay moved to London in 1922 and lived in

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

. To support herself she taught French, Art and Music at nearby private schools. She painted portraits of friends and family and invited nieces and nephews to sit for her as models. She enjoyed painting children. She made friends with women who came and went from the baby clinic near her house and made drawings of their babies. Some of these baby portraits were amongst work exhibited at the Orleans Gallery in

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

. She also painted landscapes. While living in Richmond she painted the river Thames, she kept a caravan near Sittingbourne in Kent, from which she often painted the mudflats at Swale.

Personal life

Her personal life included affairs with the painters James McBey and

Ernest Proctor Ernest Procter (22 March 1885–21 October 1935) was an English designer, illustrator and painter, and husband of artist Dod Procter. He was actively involved with the Newlyn School, partner of the Harvey-Procter School and an instructor a ...

and a relationship with

Philip Connard Philip Connard, (24 March 1875 – 8 December 1958) was a British painter known particularly for his paintings of decorative landscapes. Connard rose from humble origins to become an eminent artist in oils and watercolours whose commissions bro ...

. She lived with Connard in Richmond, England. After her death in 1963 she bequeathed works by Connard and herself to the Borough.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Finlay, Anne 1898 births 1963 deaths 20th-century Scottish painters 20th-century Scottish women artists Alumni of the Edinburgh College of Art Artists from Edinburgh Scottish women painters