Mary Pownall, later Mary Bromet, (1862–1937) was a British sculptor. She was active from 1890 until 1937 and was particularly associated with

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

Biography

Mary Pownall - Maiden meditation (avant)

Pownall was born in

Leigh Leigh may refer to: Places In England Pronounced : * Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan ** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency) * Leigh-on-Sea, Essex Pronounced : * Leigh, Dorset * Leigh, Gloucestershire * Leigh, Kent * Leigh, Staf ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

in 1862. In the 1890s she was living in

Birkenhead Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liver ...

. She studied in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

in 1896 and in Paris from 1897 to 1898 where she was taught by Jean-Baptiste Champeil and Denis Puech. She was also tutored by

Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a uniqu ...

. Pownall exhibited at the

Paris Salon The Salon (french: Salon), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art ...

from 1893 to 1999 and received an honourable mention for her work at the 1899 Exposition Universelle. She then studied in Rome from 1898 to 1901. In Rome she lived at 53b Via Margutta. Between 1897 and 1925 she regularly showed pieces at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

in London. In 1902 she married Alfred Bromet, a barrister, but she continued to use her maiden name for her work. From 1903 to 1931 they lived at Lime Lodge, Pinner Road in

. Pownall was elected an associate member of the

Royal Society of British Artists The Royal Society of British Artists (RBA) is a British art body established in 1823 as the Society of British Artists, as an alternative to the Royal Academy. History The RBA commenced with twenty-seven members, and took until 1876 to reach fif ...

in 1932. In 1935 she wrote an illustrated autobiography, "Response", under the name Mary Pownall Bromet. She died in

Oxhey Oxhey is a suburb of Watford, under the jurisdiction of the Watford Borough Council of the county of Hertfordshire, England. It is located at and is part of the Watford. It is in the Oxhey Ward of Watford Borough Council. Oxhey grew during th ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

on 25 February 1937.

Works

* Edward Villiers, 5th Earl of Clarendon (c.1900) first mayor of Watford *The Harpy Celaeno,

Kelvingrove Art Gallery Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Glasgow, Scotland. It reopened in 2006 after a three-year refurbishment and since then has been one of Scotland's most popular visitor attractions. The museum has 22 galleries, h ...

(1902) *Love or Money (1906) *An Intruder (1906) *The Great Specialist (1907) *A Ragamuffin (1907) *A Bolshevik Communist (1923) *An Aviator (c.1925) *Ralph Edward Thorpe (1927) second mayor of Watford *Three bronze figures for the Watford Peace Memorial, Watford Town Hall (unveiled 1928 at the Peace Memorial Hospital) *Politics (1931) *Acquedotts Claudio, Roma *A Sunbeam *The Kiss *A La Recherche de la Brebis Perdu *Mercury *Maiden Meditation

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pownall, Mary 1862 births 1937 deaths 20th-century British women artists 20th-century British sculptors Artists from Greater Manchester English women sculptors People from Leigh, Greater Manchester