Drawing
1902 (painted)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Ellen Terry played Mistress Page at His Majesty's Theatre in Herbert Beerbohm Tree's revival of The Merry Wives of Windsor which opened on 10 June 1902. The other favourite actress of the day, Madge Kendal, played Mistress Ford, and together they delighted audiences with the comic business. Tree had made a success with his production, and his portrayal of the rotund Falstaf, in 1889, and revived it with two of the greatest actresses of the day in honour of the coronation of King Edward VII, which was due to take place in June 1902 but was postponed until August.
The artist Pamela Colman-Smith was born in London to the American merchant, Charles Edward Smith, and his Jamaican wife, Corinne. Her father's job meant frequent trips abroad and, after the death of her mother when she was ten, she joined the Lyceum Theatre out of a desire for company. Her experience of touring theatre was to influence her later work. She studied art in Brooklyn from 1893 until 1899 but returned to England in 1899 where she became a designer and illustrator, most notably of the Rider-Waite-Smith pack of tarot cards and of theatrical subjects.
The artist Pamela Colman-Smith was born in London to the American merchant, Charles Edward Smith, and his Jamaican wife, Corinne. Her father's job meant frequent trips abroad and, after the death of her mother when she was ten, she joined the Lyceum Theatre out of a desire for company. Her experience of touring theatre was to influence her later work. She studied art in Brooklyn from 1893 until 1899 but returned to England in 1899 where she became a designer and illustrator, most notably of the Rider-Waite-Smith pack of tarot cards and of theatrical subjects.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Watercolour and ink on brown paper |
| Brief description | Ellen Terry (1847-1928) as Mistress Page with Windsor Castle in the background, reading a letter in The Merry Wives of Windsor, Her Majesty's Theatre June 1902. Indian ink and wash painting by Pamela Colman Smith (1878-1951), inscribed by Ellen Terry. |
| Physical description | Indian ink and wash drawing on brown paper of Ellen Terry as Mistress Page in The Merry Wives of Windsor, wearing red robes and headdress, standing in front of a wall overgrown with hollyhocks, behind which is a half-timbered cottage and a distant view of Windsor Castle. Inscribed beneath the image by Ellen Terry: '"You are merry- so am I. Ha Ha Ellen Terry 1902 Mistress Page". Signed lower left with the intertwined initials PCS, the monogram of Pamela Colman Smith. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Gabrielle Enthoven Collection |
| Subject depicted | |
| Place depicted | |
| Association | |
| Literary reference | <i>The Merry Wives of Windsor</i> |
| Summary | Ellen Terry played Mistress Page at His Majesty's Theatre in Herbert Beerbohm Tree's revival of The Merry Wives of Windsor which opened on 10 June 1902. The other favourite actress of the day, Madge Kendal, played Mistress Ford, and together they delighted audiences with the comic business. Tree had made a success with his production, and his portrayal of the rotund Falstaf, in 1889, and revived it with two of the greatest actresses of the day in honour of the coronation of King Edward VII, which was due to take place in June 1902 but was postponed until August. The artist Pamela Colman-Smith was born in London to the American merchant, Charles Edward Smith, and his Jamaican wife, Corinne. Her father's job meant frequent trips abroad and, after the death of her mother when she was ten, she joined the Lyceum Theatre out of a desire for company. Her experience of touring theatre was to influence her later work. She studied art in Brooklyn from 1893 until 1899 but returned to England in 1899 where she became a designer and illustrator, most notably of the Rider-Waite-Smith pack of tarot cards and of theatrical subjects. |
| Associated object | S.211-2008 (Object) |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.212-2008 |
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| Record created | July 1, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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