17/06/2026
Work of the Week!
Museum Interior, c.1875 by Elizabeth Adela Forbes née Armstrong ARWS (1859 - 1912) Oil on panel. Donated in 2007 by the Artist’s Estate
Born in Ontario, Canada, the much-loved youngest child of a Canadian government official, Elizabeth Armstrong came to England in the 1870s, chaperoned by her mother, to study art at the South Kensington schools. Her father’s sudden death led to a brief return to Canada, after which her studies continued in New York, London and Munich. Further trips throughout Europe allowed Elizabeth to experience life and draw inspiration from different communities. This work demonstrates the constraints faced by women artists in the nineteenth century. Denied access to life drawing at art schools, due to the presence of naked - often male - bodies, the study of busts and statues was a commonplace substitute.
