Jean Horsley

Jean Horsley
Born Jean Alice Horsley
1913
Auckland, New Zealand[1]
Died 1997
Auckland, New Zealand[1]
Education Elam School of Fine Art (New Zealand), Chelsea School of Art (UK)
Known for Painting
Notable work Maori Mere
Style Abstract expressionism
Awards OBE (Order of the British Empire)

Jean Alice Horsley OBE (1913–1997) was a New Zealand artist.[1] Her work is held in the permanent collection of the Auckland City Art Gallery.[2]

Career

Horsley attended the Elam School of Fine Art at the University of Auckland, and in 1934 traveled to the United Kingdom to study at London's Chelsea School of Art.[3]

She returned to New Zealand due to World War II and trained as a physical therapist.[3] She continued her interest in sketching and painting, taking lessons from Colin McCahon and through summer schools.[3]

Following the end of the war, Horsley traveled to Japan, South Africa, and the USA. She moved to London in 1961 for seven years, and then to New York, where she stayed for fifteen years. During this time she continued to paint and exhibit.[3]

In 1981, Horsley returned to New Zealand and settled in Auckland.[3]

Horsley's paintings are abstract in style,[2] often working in oils or watercolor. She was influenced heavily by the work of the abstract expressionists,[3] especially artists whose work she was exposed to while in New York, including Philip Guston, Mark Rothko, Willem de Kooning, Robert Motherwell,[4] and Helen Frankenthaler.[5]

Notable works by Horsley include: Maori Mere.[3]

In the 1996 New Year Honours, she was awarded an O.B.E for services to art.[6]

Exhibitions

Horsley exhibited regularly with the Auckland Society of the Arts between 1935–1938,[7] and was included alongside M. Rainier and Freda Simmonds in the 1957 exhibition Three Women Painters. She also held a shared exhibition with Louise Henderson at the New Vision Gallery in 1966.[5]

She exhibited with the Rutland Group,[8] an organization formed by students from the Elam School of Fine Art and The Group,[9][10] an informal art association from Christchurch, New Zealand, formed to provide a freer alternative to the Canterbury Society of Arts. She contributed works to multiple exhibitions by The Group including in: 1955;[11] 1957;[12] and 1960.[13]

During her time in England, Horsley exhibited alongside fellow expatriates Ralph Hotere, Bill Culbert, and Ted Bulmore.[5]

In 1997 a retrospective exhibit of Horsley's work entitled, Seize the Day: A Tribute to Jean Horsley, was held at the Auckland City Art Gallery.[14]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Horsley, Jean". findnzartists.org.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Jean Horsley". Auckland Art Gallery. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Maori Mere:". www.fletchercollection.co.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  4. ↑ "Representation And Reaction". www.fletchercollection.co.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 "Ferner Galleries | Jean Horsley". www.fernergalleries.co.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  6. ↑ "New Year Honours List 1996". New Year Honours List 1996. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  7. ↑ "Artists exhibited with Auckland Society of Arts". findnzartists.org.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  8. ↑ "Artists exhibited with Rutland Group". findnzartists.org.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  9. ↑ "The Group 1927 – 1977: an annotated bibliography – Heritage – Christchurch City Libraries". christchurchcitylibraries.com. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  10. ↑ "Artists exhibited with The Group". findnzartists.org.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  11. ↑ "The Group 1955". christchurchartgallery.org.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  12. ↑ "The Group 1957". christchurchartgallery.org.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  13. ↑ "The Group 1960". christchurchartgallery.org.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  14. ↑ "Seize the day: a tribute to Jean Horsley". Retrieved 5 November 2017.

Further reading

Artist files for Horsley are held at:

Also see:

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