Sarah J. Eddy
| Sarah J. Eddy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
Sarah James Eddy May 3, 1851 Boston, Massachusetts U.S. |
| Died |
March 29, 1945 (aged 93) Portsmouth, Rhode Island U.S. |
| Alma mater |
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Art Students League |
| Occupation |
Artist Abolitionist Suffragette |
| Years active | 1890-1945 |
Sarah James Eddy (May 3, 1851–March 29, 1945)[1][2] was an American artist who was active in abolition, reform, and suffragist movements.[3]
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Early life
Born in Boston, Eddy studied painting and sculpture at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and New York's Art Students League, and began exhibiting photographs in 1890, at nearly 40 years of age. Her most important exhibitions were at the New School of American Photography and the selection of American Women photographers at the Paris Universal Exposition of 1900.[1]
Artistic career
Photography
Eddy's photography appeared in American and foreign exhibitions until about 1910. She preferred photographing women, children, and artists,[1] and her photographs were included in camera club exhibitions in Providence and Hartford, and were frequently shown at the Boston Camera Club.[1] Juries for photography salons accepted her work in Philadelphia (1898), Pittsburgh (1899, 1900), and Washington, D.C. (1896). In 1903, her pictures were included in salons in Chicago, Cleveland, Minneapolis, and Toronto.
In 1894, Eddy wrote and illustrated a short article "A Good Use for the Camera" for The American Annual of Photography. In the article, Eddy concludes that the personal interactions she had with her photographic subjects were as rewarding as the finished images. She writes, "We enter into sympathetic relations with the people who furnish us with pictures. We are grateful to them and they are very grateful to us. We meet on common ground." The American Annual of Photography subsequently ran illustrations by her in 1895 and 1902.[4]
Painting
In 1893, Eddy painted a portrait of African-American social reformer, Frederick Douglass. In the portrait, Douglass holds a baton that symbolizes his authority during his tenure as marshal of the District of Columbia. Douglass sat for the portrait twice during the summer of 1883.[3]
Animal rights activism
A committed animal rights activist and vegetarian,[5] Eddy founded the Rhode Island Humane Education Association. Between 1899 and 1938, Eddy wrote or compiled five children's books on animals and their care, which featured photographs of her own felines.[1][5] At her death, she was the director of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.[1]
Personal life
Eddy, who never married, died in her Portsmouth, RI home, on March 29, 1945, at age ninety-three.[4]
Works and publications
- Eddy, Sarah J. Alexander and Some Other Cats. Boston: Marshall Jones Co., 1929. OCLC 44679562
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Peterson, Christian A. (2012). Pictorial Photography at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts: History of Exhibitions, Publications, and Acquisitions with Biographies of All 243 Pictorialists in the Collection. Minneapolis, Minn.: Privately Published. p. 71. OCLC 824617933.
- ↑ Webster, Marjorie; Schmidt, Gloria (2 October 2014). "Hidden in Plain Sight: Sarah J. Eddy in Portsmouth, Rhode Island (1900-1945)" (PDF). Portsmouth Historical Society. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
- 1 2 Eddy, Sarah J. "Frederick Douglass. 1883". Frederick Douglass National Historic Site: District of Columbia. National Park Service, US Department of the Interior. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- 1 2 Peterson, Christian (1 June 2013). "Approved biography for Sarah J. Eddy (Courtesy of Christian Peterson)". Luminous Lint. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- 1 2 McGraw, Jim (2 June 2014). "Have you met Portsmouth's Sarah J. Eddy?". East Bay RI. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
Further reading
- Schmidt, Gloria and Marjory Webster. "Hidden in Plain Sight - Sarah Eddy in Portsmouth." Portsmouth Historical Society and the Portsmouth Free Public Library. October 2, 2014.