Ann Lee (illustrator)

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Ann Lee
NationalityBritish
Years activeBotanical illustrations
Anne Lee drawings of Asclepias curassavica, Anagallis monelli, 1771

Ann Lee (1753 – c.1790) was a British botanical illustrator who also illustrated birds and insects.

Lee was the youngest daughter of James Lee, a Scottish nurseryman trading in Hammersmith, London,[1] who is described in one source as "the botanist John Lee".[2] She was a pupil of artist and illustrator Sydney Parkinson (1745-1771) until his early death at sea in the employment of Joseph Banks.[3] In Parkinson's will he left "whatever utensils that are useful in painting or drawing to Mr. Lee's daughter, my scholar."[4][5] In 2012 these "utensils" were reported to be in the collection of the National Library of Australia.[6]

Lee was commissioned by John Fothergill to draw plants from his garden and insects and shells from his museum. After Fothergill's death his collection, including Lee's drawings, was sold to Catherine the Great. Lee made copies of her drawings before they were sent to St Petersburg.[7]

Certhia familiaris Linnaeus Eurasian treecreeper- Ann Lee - 107-1973-26

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew holds the Ann Lee Collection, presented to Kew in 1969. This comprises 165 illustrations of which some two thirds are attributed to Lee, the remaining 60 being on Chinese paper and believed to be by Chinese artists, thought to have been collected by her father in connection with his work supplying exotic plants to the gardens.[1] Her works held by Kew will be included in a major project with the Oak Spring Garden Foundation[8] to digitise the work of women botanical illustrators.[9] The Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter holds a collection of 79 of her drawings of butterflies, birds and insects donated by her descendent Marjorie Lee.[7][2]

A group of seven of her botanical illustrations, dated in 1771 when she was aged 17 or 18, sold for £3,125 at Christie's auction house in 2013.[3]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Le Cornu, Emma. "Conservation of Chinese watercolours from the Ann Lee collection". www.kew.org. Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Psittacus Iris". Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery. Archived from the original on 17 January 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Anne Lee (London 1753-circa 1790)". www.christies.com. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  4. ^ "Ann Lee and Parkinson's paintbrushes". By God, I'll not lose Hardy!. 26 October 2014. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  5. ^ Parkinson, Stanfield, ed. (1773), "Preface", A Journal of a Voyage to the South Seas, in His Majesty's Ship, The Endeavour. Faithfully transcribed from the papers of the late Sydney Parkinson..., p. xv, archived from the original on 5 April 2012, retrieved 4 April 2021{{citation}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. ^ "Sydney Parkinson: Commentary, note 4". The Captain Cook Society (CCS). Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  7. ^ a b Morgenroth, Holly (8 March 2024). "Ann Lee". Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  8. ^ "Women Authoring Change at Oak Spring". Oak Spring Garden Foundation. 9 July 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2021. OSGF has worked to increase awareness of women botanical artists by ... and by supporting the digitization of works by women artists in the collections at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  9. ^ Durant, Joanna. "Passionate pioneers: increasing access to botanical artwork by women artists". www.kew.org. Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Retrieved 4 April 2021.


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