Mary Ellen Sigsbee (1876–1960) was an American artist and magazine illustrator.
Mary Ellen Sigsbee | |
|---|---|
 1899 portrait sketch | |
| Born | February 26, 1876 New Orleans, Louisiana, United States |
| Died | 1960 (aged 83–84) Woodstock, New York, United States |
| Occupation | Painter, illustrator, artist |
| Spouse(s) | William Balfour Ker, Anton Otto Fischer |
| Parent(s) | |
Early life
editSigsby was born in New Orleans,[1] on February 26, 1876,[2] one of four daughters of Charles D. Sigsbee, captain of the USS Maine during the Spanish–American War.[3][4]
Career
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Sigsbee studied at the Arts Students League.[5] One of her paintings was exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1908 - a feat achieved by few American women.[5]
A feminist and suffragist, Sisgbee designed posters for the American Woman Suffrage Association.[5][1] One of which, What breaks up the home? What will save the home? Votes for Women (circa 1917), is in the privately held Ann Lewis Women's Suffrage Collection.[6]
From 1909 to 1917, and from 1930 to 1932, she made illustrations for the Evening Journal.[5][7] Her painting The Christmas Peek was used as the Christmas 1934 cover of the Saturday Evening Post.[7] She also produced work for Harper's Magazine.[8]
A copy of her print The New Hand is in the National Child Labor Committee Collection of the United States Library of Congress.[9]
Personal life
editSigsbee was married twice. Her first marriage was to William Balfour Ker,[7] a fellow artist and socialist. The marriage was conducted against her father's wishes, after an 1898 elopement.[3] They first lived in Greenwich Village, but after a period working in Paris, the marriage failed[3] and they divorced in 1910.[7] They had a son, David (1906–1922).[10]
In 1912 she married the magazine illustrator Anton Otto Fischer.[5][10] They first lived in Bushnellsville, New York before moving to a house near the intersection of Elmendorf Street and Ten Broeck Avenue in nearby Kingston (the house still stands). They had a daughter, Katrina Sigsbee Fischer (1914–1998). The family eventually settled into a house off Glasco Turnpike in Woodstock, New York just prior to World War II.[11]
Sigsbee and both husbands were former students of illustrator Howard Pyle.[10] Her son David was adopted by Fischer.[10] During her marriages she used the names Sigsbee Ker and Sigsbee Fischer.[5]
References
edit- ^ a b c "Mary Ellen Sigsbee". Spartacus Educational. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
- ^ "Fischer, Mary Ellen Sigsbee". Benezit Dictionary of Artists. 2011. doi:10.1093/benz/9780199773787.article.b00064725. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
- ^ a b c "William Balfour Ker - Artist Biography for William Balfour Ker". Ask Art. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
- ^ a b "Mary Ellen Sigsbee (Ker) Fischer - Artist, Fine Art Prices, Auction Records for Mary Ellen Sigsbee (Ker) Fischer". Ask Art. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f "Artist Biography for Mary Ellen Sigsbee (Ker) Fischer". Ask Art. Retrieved 28 June 2019.
- ^ "Poster : What breaks up the home? What will save the home? Votes for Women. [Circa 1917]". Ann Lewis Women's Suffrage Collection. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
- ^ a b c d "Ker, William Balfour". schoonoverstudios.com. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
- ^ "Mary Ellen Sigsbee". Harper's Magazine. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
- ^ "The new hand / Mary Ellen Sigsbee". Library of Congress. Washington, D.C. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
- ^ a b c d "Anton Otto Fischer". Illustration History. Norman Rockwell Museum. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
- ^ Andre Mele lecture on his great-uncle, Anton Otto Fischer, September 24, 2011 on YouTube, September 24, 2011
External links
edit
- Saturday Evening Post page including The Christmas Peek cover
- Mary Ellen Sigsbee at Find a Grave