Mary Smith Prize

Russell, Mary Priscilla, and Mary Smith

Mary Smith Prize was an award granted to Philadelphia women at Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts exhibitions for works that show "the most originality of subject, beauty of design and drawing, and finesse of color and skill of execution".[1][2] It was founded in 1879 by Russell Smith, in accordance with the wishes of his deceased daughter Mary Russell Smith.[3][4] It was awarded from 1879, when women artists were not otherwise earning prizes for their work, until 1969. Other 19th century prizes for women artists were the Dodge Prize at the National Academy of Design and the Shaw Prize at the Society of American Artists.

Prize

Mary Russell Smith (1842-1878), Springs Bounty.

It was among the top prizes for 19th and early 20th century women artists. Others were the Dodge Prize at the National Academy of Design and the Shaw Prize at the Society of American Artists. Women did not win non-gender specific awards until 1896 when Mary Hazelton won the National Academy of Design Hallgarten Prize.[4] Initially, it carried a cash prize of $100, which was increased to $300 in 1960.[2] The prize was awarded until 1969.[5]

Mary Russell Smith

Mary Russell Smith, the daughter of landscape and theatrical scenery painter William Thompson Russell Smith (Russell Smith) (1812-96) and amateur artist Mary Priscilla Wilson Smith (1819-74). Both of her parents exhibited at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.[6] Mary and her brother, Xanthus Russell Smith, both developed an interest in painting. Xanthus attended the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and Mary exhibited her paintings of rabbits, chicks, and other animals there 1859 to 1869, and again between 1876 and 1878. Russell Smith established the Mary Smith Prize following her death.[6] Mary Russell Smith had designated that upon her death the proceeds of the sale of her paintings should be used to fund the prize.[4]

Recipients

The prize was awarded until 1969. Recipients through 1919 include:

Notes

  1. ↑ In 1902, Elizabeth Wentworth Roberts, the 1889 recipient of the Mary Smith Prize, founded the Jennie Sesnan Gold Medal at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.[9]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "About: Elizabeth Wentworth Roberts". Concord Art Association. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Peter H. Falk; Anna Wells Rutledge; Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (1 November 1989). The Annual Exhibition Record of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts: 1914-1968. Sound View Press. p. 29. ISBN 978-0-932087-07-2.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (1914). Catalogue of the Annual Exibition of Painting and Sculpture. pp. 10–11.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Kirsten Swinth (2001). Painting Professionals: Women Artists & the Development of Modern American Art, 1870-1930. UNC Press Books. p. 233. ISBN 978-0-8078-4971-2.
  5. ↑ Michael David Zellman (1986). American Art Analog: 1688-1842. Chelsea House Publishers. p. 322. ISBN 978-1-55546-001-3.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Edward J. Sozanski, Inquirere Art Critic (April 3, 1998). "The Smiths: A Clan Of Artists Rediscovered". The Inquirer (Philly.com) (Philadelphia: Interstate General Media, LLC). Retrieved March 14, 2015.
  7. ↑ Gaze, Delia (1997). Dictionary of Women Artists. Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers. p. 485. ISBN 1-884-964-21-4.
  8. ↑ Robert McHenry (1980). Famous American Women: A Biographical Dictionary from Colonial Times to the Present. Courier Dover Publications. p. 369. ISBN 978-0-486-24523-2.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (1919). Catalogue of the Annual Exhibition. Philadelphia: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. p. 10.
  10. ↑ Paschall, W. Douglass (2002). Impressionist Jewels: The Paintings of Martha Walter. Philadelphia, Pa.: Woodmere Art Museum. Retrieved 7 March 2015.