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Louise Hammond Willis Snead (, Willis;
pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...
, Louis Hammond Willis; December 14, 1868 - October 7, 1958) was an American artist, writer, and composer. Her art specialized in miniature painting, illustrations, and needlework. She lectured on Persian rugs, wrote articles of various topics under a masculine pseudonym, and even composed a march.


Early life and education

Louise Hammond Willis was born in
Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
, December 14, 1868. From her mother, Elizabeth Louise Hammond, Louise inherited a love of nature and a scientific mind. From her father, Major Edward Willis, she inherited ambition, an indomitable will, and perseverance. The Willis home was the meeting place of people of talent and distinction. She was graduated with first-honor medal and diploma from the
Charleston Female Seminary The Charlestown Female Seminary, was a private Christian school for wealthy white girls in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. Opened in 1830, the female seminary was the second school in Charlestown for young women. Background The establ ...
. Her art studies were carried on in Charleston, under E. Whittock McDowell, and in New York City under James Carroll Beckwith and
Harry Siddons Mowbray Harry Siddons Mowbray (August 5, 1858 – 1928) was an American artist. He executed various painting commissions for J.P. Morgan, F.W. Vanderbilt, and other clients. He served as director of the American Academy in Rome from 1902–1904. Biog ...
. She studied drawing, painting and modeling under William Merritt Chase, Frank DuMond,
Irving Ramsey Wiles Irving Ramsey Wiles (April 8, 1861 – July 29, 1948) was an American artist, born in Utica, New York. In the early 20th century, Wiles was a popular exponent of American grand manner portraiture as redefined by the work of John Singer Sargent, ...
, and others at
Art Students League of New York The Art Students League of New York is an art school at 215 West 57th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may stu ...
, New York School of Art and in European galleries, as well as being a pupil of Theodora Thayer and Alice Beckington. Snead also completed a post-graduate course in literature and languages.


Career

While still a student, Snead had charge of the painting and drawing classes at Charleston Female Seminary. She was the assistant teacher in the Carolina Art School. Believing that everything helps everything else, she applied herself to the study of architecture, and in so doing, developed plans. While her specialty was portraiture, her illustrations and pen-and-ink drawings were meritorious, while she also excelled in the art of fine and artistic needle work, point-laces and art embroideries. Snead exhibited for years in the New York Watercolor Society and at the
American Society of Miniature Painters The American Society of Miniature Painters (ASMP) was an association of miniature painters, organized in March 1899. The ten founding members of the ASMP included Virginia Richmond Reynolds, Isaac A. Josephi, William Jacob Baer, Alice Beckington ...
. She designed houseboats and model modern suburban homes for ten years. She received Honorable mention at the
South Carolina Inter-State and West Indian Exposition The South Carolina Inter-State and West Indian Exposition, commonly called the Charleston Exposition or the West Indian Exposition, was a multi-county fair and regional trade exposition held in Charleston, South Carolina from December 1, 1901 t ...
, 1902. Snead lectured on “The Magic Carpet," or the making of real Persian rugs. Other lectures were on topics of special interest to women's clubs, one being point laces. She illustrated a series of articles on the subject of point-lace making for '' Chautauqua Magazine''. Snead copied many antique embroideries from museums, in the line of art needlework. She was interested in handicrafts, weaving, hammered brass, illuminated leather, tapestry and in all lines of interior decoration. Snead was familiar with a half-dozen languages. She wrote both prose and poetry for magazines, her writings appeared over the pen name "Louis Hammond Willis." Snead contributed largely to women's magazines for fifteen years, and illustrated her own articles. She also played on a number of musical instruments. Having studied the theory of music, her compositions demonstrated originality. Snead composed approximately 20 songs and a march that was orchestrated by Victor Herbert and played by Patrick Gilmore's Band.


Personal life

Snead made her home at 1 Wilson Avenue, Murray Hill, Flushing, Long Island, New York. She was a member of
Daughters of the American Revolution The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence. A non-profit group, they promote ...
, and the Pennsylvania Society of Miniature Painters. By religion, she was Protestant. Her recreations included landscape gardening, building stone pillars and walls, and making concrete garden furniture. On September 4, 1894, she married Harry Vairin Snead (1867–deceased) of New York City, son of Col. Thomas L. Snead of Virginia. They had one daughter, Louise Vairin Snead (1897-1984). Louise Hammond Willis Snead died in Darien, Connecticut, October 7, 1958.


Selected works

* ''Silver and gold'', 1916


Notes


References


Attribution

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Bibliography

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External links

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"The Language of Monkeys"
by Louis Hammond Willis, 1891 {{DEFAULTSORT:Snead, Louise Hammond Willis 1868 births 1958 deaths 19th-century American women writers 19th-century women textile artists 19th-century textile artists 19th-century American artists 19th-century pseudonymous writers 20th-century pseudonymous writers 20th-century American artists 20th-century American women artists 19th-century American writers 20th-century American writers 20th-century American women writers Artists from Charleston, South Carolina American illustrators American composers American art educators American embroiderers Pseudonymous women writers Art Students League of New York alumni Portrait miniaturists Wikipedia articles incorporating text from A Woman of the Century