Mrs Annie L Swynnerton (1844-1933)

Gwenny Griffiths 1867 - 1954

Summary

A rare portrait of Manchester born painter Annie Louisa Swynnerton (née Robinson; 1844-1933). Swynnerton was elected the first female Associate Member of the Royal Academy (ARA) in 1922. The artist of this portrait, Gwenny Griffiths had a reputation as a painter of official portraits and this drawing may have been a study for an oil painting. It may, equally, have been a token of Swynnerton and Griffith's friendship. Both artists studied at the Académie Julian in Paris and may have come to know one another there. They certainly knew one another at some point before 1914, when Swynnerton took up a studio at No.1A, The Avenue Studios, 76 Fulham Road, London, becoming a neighbour to Griffiths, who had previously occupied No.1A and then moved to No.5 in the same complex of studios. By the 1920s, Griffiths had become a close friend to Swynnerton and sometimes helped her with correspondence due to her failing eyesight. There are 16 works by Swynnerton in Manchester Art Gallery's collection and 36 works by the artist in UK public collections.