Catherine Wright Burcher (née Kerry; 1 July 1849 – 19 May 1921) was a New Zealand artist.
Catherine Wright Burcher | |
|---|---|
| Born | Catherine Wright Kerry 1 July 1849 |
| Died | 19 May 1921 (aged 71) Auckland, New Zealand |
| Resting place | Purewa Cemetery, Meadowbank, New Zealand |
| Known for | Painting and china painting |
| Spouse | Albert Edward Burcher |
Biography
editBurcher was born Catherine Wright Kerry in Bebington, Cheshire, United Kingdom, to Rubens James Kerry.[1] On 9 May 1871 in Wallasey, Cheshire, she married Albert Edward Burcher, and they arrived in Auckland, New Zealand in 1878.[2][3]
She was trained by a fellow of the Royal Art Society before she left the United Kingdom.[2] She was well known for both her painting and glazing china.[1] Burcher was secretary of an Auckland society for ladies who painted china, and she was given several pieces of china by Sir George Grey for her to copy.[4]
Burcher was a member of the Auckland Art Society from its foundation and exhibited with them multiple times from 1881 to 1895.[1][2][5][6] She also exhibited with the Society of Artists in 1879 and the Colonial and Indian exhibition in London in 1886;[1][5] was on the committee of and exhibited with the New Zealand Art Students Association from 1884 to 1885;[1] and taught art at the Auckland Girls' High School and in 1882 organised an exhibition of art by the students.[7]
During World War I, she made a copy of Edmund Blair Leighton's In Time of Peril, which is in the Auckland City Art Gallery (now Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki) collection.[1] It took 12 months for Burcher to make the copy and she consulted Leighton for advice as she painted.[8] Sources are divided on how much Burcher's copy sold for to benefit the Red Cross: Platts states it was £2000, whereas her obituary suggests it was £800, both, however, were well above its estimated value of £500.[1][2][9]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h Platts, Una (1980). Nineteenth Century New Zealand Artists: A Guide & Handbook (PDF). Christchurch: Avon Fine Prints. p. 57.
- ^ a b c d e "Personal". Hawke's Bay Tribune. Vol. XI, no. 131. 26 May 1921. p. 4.
- ^ "Deaths". New Zealand Herald. Vol. LXI, no. 18860. 7 November 1924. p. 1.
- ^ "Ladies' Gossip". Lyttelton Times. Vol. XCIX, no. 11580. 16 May 1898. p. 2.
- ^ a b "Burcher, Mrs K." findnzartists.org.nz. Retrieved 2023-01-30.
- ^ "The Auckland Society of Arts Exhibition". Auckland Star. Vol. XII, no. 3338. 7 April 1881. p. 2.
- ^ "Mrs. Burcher's Art Exhibition". Auckland Star. Vol. XVI, no. 3851. 19 December 1882. p. 2.
- ^ "News of the Day". Colonist. Vol. LIII, no. 13082. 17 April 1911. p. 2.
- ^ "Advertisements". Observer. Vol. XXXVII, no. 44. 7 July 1917. p. 20.