Susan Isabel Dacre (1844–1933), known as Isabel Dacre, was an English artist of the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

Biography

She was born in Leamington, Warwickshire, and was educated at a convent school in

Salford Salford ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Greater Manchester, England, on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre. Landmarks include the former Salford Town Hall, town hall, ...

. For the decade of 1858–68 she lived in Paris, first attending school and later working as a governess. After a winter in Italy (1869), she returned to Paris, and was present during the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

and the

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (, ) was a French revolutionary government that seized power in Paris on 18 March 1871 and controlled parts of the city until 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard (France), Nation ...

. She returned to England in 1871 and began studying art at the

Manchester School of Art Manchester School of Art on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road in Manchester, England, was established in 1838 as the Manchester School of Design. It is the second-oldest art school in the United Kingdom after the Royal College of Art which was founded ...

, where she won the Queen's Prize in 1875. She began a lifelong friendship with fellow artist

Annie Swynnerton Annie Louisa Swynnerton, ARA ( Robinson; 26 February 1844 – 24 October 1933) was a British painter best known for her portrait and symbolist works. She studied at Manchester School of Art and at the Académie Julian, before basing herself in ...

; the two women pursued their art studies in Rome and Paris between 1874 and 1880. Around 1872,

Lord Leighton Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton, (3 December 1830 – 25 January 1896), known as Sir Frederic Leighton between 1878 and 1896, was a British Victorian painter, draughtsman, and sculptor. His works depicted historical, biblical, and classi ...

dictated notes and observations on his methods of painting and composing his pictures to Isabel Dacre, during a stay on the island of

Capri Capri ( , ; ) is an island located in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrento Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples in the Campania region of Italy. A popular resort destination since the time of the Roman Republic, its natural beauty ...

Portraits and the Académie Julian

From 1877–80 she was in Paris at the

Académie Julian The () was a private art school for painting and sculpture founded in Paris, France, in 1867 by French painter and teacher Rodolphe Julian (1839–1907). The school was active from 1868 through 1968. It remained famous for the number and qual ...

with a fellow - pupil

Marie Bashkirtseff Marie Bashkirtseff, born Maria Konstantinovna Bashkirtseva (; – 31 October 1884), was an émigré artist who was born into a noble family on their estate near the city of Poltava. She lived and worked in Paris, and died at the age of 25. L ...

and bracketed with her as first in the concourse mentioned in the famous diary. Dacre was associated with Julian's atelier on two occasions: 1878–79 when she completed a striking black and white chalk drawing, ''Portrait of a Young Girl in a Satin Cap,'' ca. 1879, which is owned by the Andre Del Debbio Collection, Paris. Later she accomplished several works that gained her entry to the Paris Salon. For example, her Salon entry in 1881 was a portrait: ''Portrait of Mme. F.W. '' (no 579.)

Manchester Art Gallery Manchester Art Gallery, formerly Manchester City Art Gallery, is a publicly owned art museum on Mosley Street in Manchester city centre, England. The main gallery premises were built for a learned society in 1823 and today its collection occupi ...

own a poignant oil painting ''Italian Women In Church.'' Throughout her career her portraits were admired in Italy, England and Paris. After living in London for a time she returned to Manchester in 1883 and shared a studio in 10 King Street with the artist Mary Florence Monkhouse. After much campaigning by both Dacre and Monkhouse in 1897 Dacre was made a member of the council of the Manchester Academy of Fine Arts and Monkhouse was appointed auditor. At the

Royal Jubilee Exhibition, Manchester 1887 The Royal Jubilee Exhibition of 1887 was held in Old Trafford, Manchester, England, to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria's accession. It was opened by Princess Alexandra, the Princess of Wales (wife of the Prince of Wales, later Edwa ...

she had her work on display, and assisted

Ford Madox Brown Ford Madox Brown (16 April 1821 – 6 October 1893) was a British painter of moral and historical subjects, notable for his distinctively graphic and often William Hogarth, Hogarthian version of the Pre-Raphaelite style. Arguably, his mos ...

with the decoration of the exhibition's dome.

Women's suffrage campaigner

Dacre was a noted

Women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...

campaigner. With Annie Swynnerton she founded the Manchester Society of Women Artists in 1876; Dacre also served as president of the organization. For a decade (1885–95), Dacre was a member of the executive committee of the Manchester National Society for Women's Suffrage. Dacre's portrait of

Lydia Becker Lydia Ernestine Becker (24 February 1827 – 18 July 1890) was a leader in the early British suffrage movement, as well as an amateur scientist with interests in biology and astronomy. She established Manchester as a centre for the suffrage mov ...

is one of her best-known works.Carol David, "Investitures of Power: Portraits of Professional Women," ''Technical Communication Quarterly'', Vol. 10 No. 1 (January 2001), pp. 5-29.

References

Bibliography

Susan W Thomson, ''Manchester’s Victorian Art Scene And Its Unrecognised Artists,'' Manchester Art Press, 2007.

External links

*
Susan Isabel Dacre page at AnnieLouisaSwynnerton.com
Web site showing all known works. {{DEFAULTSORT:Dacre, Susan 1844 births 1933 deaths 19th-century English painters 20th-century English painters Académie Julian alumni English portrait painters English suffragists People from Leamington Spa 20th-century English women painters 19th-century English women painters