Margot Eates (23 June 1913 – 24 September 1994) was a British

art historian Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

and

curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

who led the London Museum (predecessor institution to the

Museum of London The Museum of London is a museum in London, covering the history of the UK's capital city from prehistoric to modern times. It was formed in 1976 by amalgamating collections previously held by the City Corporation at the Guildhall, London, Gui ...

) through the

second world war World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Early life and education

Eates was born in London to parents Augustus Reginald Eates (a general practitioner) and Mary

Louise Eates Louise Mary Eates (née Peters; 1877–1944) was a British suffragette, chair of Kensington Women's Social and Political Union and a women's education activist. Life Louise Mary Peters was born in Richmond, Yorkshire in 1877. She was educat ...

(a lecturer and campaigner for women's suffrage).

Career

After working for several seasons at Maiden Castle hill fort excavation, Eates inherited professional responsibilities from Tessa Verney Wheeler following her death, including dealing with the press and inducting new workers. Eates was one of many women trained by Tessa Verney Wheeler who played a significant role in early twentieth century archaeology, and was one of the early organisers who established the Institute of Archaeology, in London. Eates then joined the staff of the London Museum (one of two organisations which become the

), giving lectures to students. She went on to manage the movement of the collection into storage during the war, and worked on keeping the London Museum open, campaigning for the use of Lancaster House premises and co-curating the 'New Movements in Art' exhibition. She became the first example of a TV archaeologist when she presented a programme about the Maiden Castle excavations as a live broadcast on the BBC on 14 July 1937. After the war Eates turned her attention to art, and in 1948 producing the first book about her friend Paul Nash, following his death in 1946. Eates worked closely with her partner Hartley Ramsden throughout their lives together, and contributed to Ramsden's volumes on

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...

. Eates later turned her efforts to church preservation, campaigns against airport extensions, and urban gardening.

Personal life

Eates met Hartley Ramsden in 1930 and the two were described as 'life colleagues' in their obituaries. The Tate Archive contains their papers, including an account of the early part of their loving relationship written by Eates. Their 1987 joint portrait by Lucinda Douglas-Menzies is held by the National Portrait Gallery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eates, Margot People from London 1913 births 1994 deaths British curators British women curators British art historians Women art historians