Phillida Nicholson (1924 - 2021) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

-born

artist An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse refers to a practitioner in the visual arts only. However, t ...

and Land Girl.

Early life

Phillida Nicholson was born in Bodfari, North Wales. She was the youngest daughter of Molly and Richard Nicholson. During

World War Two World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Nicholson served in the Women's Land Army. Liverpool College of Art 2018

After the war, Nicholson studied at the Liverpool College of Art. Initially interested in sculpture, she later worked with oil painting and as a tapestry designer. Nicholson furthered her studies at the Florence Academy of Fine Arts, the

Académie André Lhote An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

in Paris, and at

London University The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

Career

Nicholson widely travelled during her career across

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the Er ...

, and Australia, and worked as an archaeological artist on British and American digs. Her work has been exhibited at multiple locations, including the

Redfern Gallery The Redfern Gallery is an exhibition space in the West End of London specialising in contemporary British art. It was founded by Arthur Knyvett-Lee and Anthony Maxtone Graham in 1923 as an artists' cooperative on the top floor of Redfern H ...

, the Piccadilly Gallery and the Leicester Galleries in London, the Minories in Colchester, and the

Ashgate Gallery Ashgate Publishing was an academic book and journal publisher based in Farnham (Surrey, United Kingdom). It was established in 1967 and specialised in the social sciences, arts, humanities and professional practice. It had an American office in ...

in Farnham, Hampshire, with her paintings touring in Wales between 1953-4 and again in 1964.

Notable works

''The Village'' (1953),

National Museum Wales National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

. ''The Shepherd'' (1956),

. ''Bore Llachar, Aberdaron'' (date unknown)
Oriel Mon

Later life

Nicholson spent her winters in a small studio in

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batte ...

, where she would walk around London and visit galleries. She developed dementia, and died in early 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholson, Phillida Welsh women painters 1924 births 2021 deaths 20th-century Welsh painters 20th-century Welsh women artists Alumni of Liverpool College of Art People from Denbighshire