Beatrice Offor (1864–1920) was a British painter. She is primarily known for portraits; often of an esoteric nature.

Life

Offor was born in 1864 in

Sydenham Sydenham may refer to: Places Australia * Sydenham, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney ** Sydenham railway station, Sydney * Sydenham, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne ** Sydenham railway line, the name of the Sunbury railway line, Melbourne ...

, Kent and trained at the

Slade School of Art The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...

in London, where she became a close friend of

Moina Mathers Moina Mathers, born Mina Bergson (28 February 1865 – 25 July 1928), was an artist and occultist at the turn of the 20th century. She was the sister of French philosopher Henri Bergson, the first man of Jewish descent to be awarded the Nobel Pri ...

. In 1892 she married William Farran Littler, an artist and sculptor. Much of her work consisted of representations of heads of young women. A report published in 1907 said that:

the famous "Offor Heads" are known the world over. Indeed, it may be said that Miss Beatrice Offor is one of the most popular artists of the day, her pictures are eagerly sought after, and publishers vie with one another for the honour of giving her works to the public.

Her paintings were shown regularly at the Royal Academy of Arts. She often used her sisters as models, often painting brides and nude women. She also painted portraits of Joseph Howard MP and Sir Ralph Littler, KC. She painted a copy of

Perugino Pietro Perugino (, ; – 1523), born Pietro Vannucci, was an Italian Renaissance painter of the Umbrian school, who developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance. Raphael was his most famous pupil. Ea ...

's ''Virgin and Child'' for Tottenham Parish Church. For some time she was based in

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

– the Royal Academy catalogues give an address in the

King's Road King's Road or Kings Road (or sometimes the King's Road, especially when it was the king's private road until 1830, or as a colloquialism by middle/upper class London residents), is a major street stretching through Chelsea and Fulham, both ...

from 1899 – but following her second marriage to James Philip Beavan, a fruit importer, in 1907, she moved to

Bruce Grove Bruce Grove is a ward in Tottenham, enclosed by Lordship Recreation Ground, Lordship Lane, Philip Lane, and the High Road. The population of the ward at the 2011 Census was 14,483. Nearby Bruce Castle was named after Robert the Bruce. When Ro ...

Tottenham Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Wal ...

, in North London. She suffered a nervous breakdown in 1919, and died on 7 August 1920 from injuries sustained after falling from a window. A verdict of suicide while of unsound mind was returned at the inquest. She is buried at

Brockley and Ladywell Cemeteries Brockley and Ladywell Cemeteries (also known as Ladywell and Brockley Cemetery) were opened within one month of each other in 1858 and are sited on adjacent plots of previously open land. The two component parts are characteristic examples of the ...

Public collections

Almost 40 of her paintings are held in the collection of the

Bruce Castle Museum Bruce Castle (formerly the Lordship House) is a Grade I listed 16th-century manor house in Lordship Lane, Tottenham, London. It is named after the House of Bruce who formerly owned the land on which it is built. Believed to stand on the site o ...

, Tottenham; they include portraits of young women, local dignitaries, and a woman believed to be the novelist '

Ouida Ouida (; 1 January 1839 – 25 January 1908) was the pseudonym of the English novelist Maria Louise Ramé (although she preferred to be known as Marie Louise de la Ramée). During her career, Ouida wrote more than 40 novels, as well as s ...

'. Her portrait of Sir Ralph Littler is in the

Middlesex Guildhall The Middlesex Guildhall is the home of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. It stands on the south-west corner of Parliament Square in London. It is a Grade II* listed building. Constructe ...

Art Collection. A centenary exhibition "Sisters, Sirens and Saints: Imagining the Women of Beatrice Offor" at Bruce Castle has been extended until December 2022.

Selected paintings

File:Offor Destiny.jpg, Destiny File:Offor Rosary.jpg, The Rosary File:Offor Circe.jpg, Circe File:Offor Miss BS.jpg, Miss B.S. File:Offor Gazer.jpg, The Crystal Gazer

References

External links

Beatrice Offor: An Esoteric artist?
by Alan Walker

by Jan Marsh
Official Website
archived at https://web.archive.org/web/20190302073800/http://beatriceoffor.com.au/artwork.html *

posted a
Catherine La Rose The Poet of Painting
{{DEFAULTSORT:Offor, Beatrice 1864 births 1920 deaths People educated at Tudor Hall School, Banbury 19th-century British painters 20th-century British painters People from Sydenham, London Alumni of the Slade School of Fine Art Suicides by jumping in England 1920 suicides Suicides in Tottenham