The Women artists of Fitzrovia – lunchtime talk at Fitzrovia Chapel

Women flocked to The Slade School of Fine Art on Gower Street when it opened in 1871 because unlike the Royal Academy it admitted female students on an almost equal footing with men. It also allowed women to attend the life drawing classes providing the male models sported some strategically positioned drapery. By the 1890s women students outnumbered the men.

When they graduated, Fitzrovia’s low rents, artistic associations and generally bohemian atmosphere persuaded some of these women artists to accompany their male counterparts into our local garrets and studios, and more female creatives came to join them. They included women who painted on the walls of our neighbourhood restaurants and hospitals, women employed in the Omega Workshops on Fitzroy Square, and one outstanding Surrealist painter, Eileen Agar.

In the second of three lunchtime talks on Women in Fitzrovia, Sue Blundell and Nick Bailey will discuss women artists of Fitzrovia’s past.

The Women of Fitzrovia: “Women Artists”, presented by Sue Blundell and Nick Bailey at The Fitzrovia Chapel, 2 Pearson Square, London W1T 3BF. From 1pm to 2pm, Tuesday 18 July August. Entry is free but must be booked in advance.

Please support The Fitzrovia News. Consider helping us cover our costs by visiting our secure payment page.