Oil paint on canvas
Tate Britain
Tate Collection
Works with images
Works on display
General Collection
Collection
<a href="https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/maria-spilsbury-517" aria-label="More by Maria Spilsbury" data-gtm-name="header_link_artist" data-gtm-destination="page--artist">Maria Spilsbury</a>
Schoolmistress
Presented by Miss Ruth Young 1937
actions: expressive
adults
architecture
book - non-specific
boy
children
classroom
education
education, science and learning
educational and scientific
features
girl
group
groups
interiors
landscape
landscape - non-specific
leisure and pastimes
objects
people
public and municipal
reading
reading, writing, printed matter
recreational activities
society
student
talking
teacher
window
woman
work and occupations
<p>A young woman in white is shown teaching the children gathered around her. One boy sits absorbed in reading <span>A Pilgrim’s Progress, </span>by John Bunyan. The Christian message of this book is reinforced by the church seen in the distance. Maria Spilsbury often portrayed women in such nurturing roles, reflecting the importance of women educators at this time. Women were especially active in the growing Sunday School movement, which aimed to educate working-class children on Sundays, their one day off. Spilsbury also painted a larger version of this picture (with more overt Christian symbolism) and probably exhibited one of these at the Royal Academy in 1804. At that time, her work was reputedly so popular that carriages would queue outside her London studio.</p><p><em>Gallery label, October 2023</em></p>
painting oil paint canvas
23 August 2019 – 17 November 2019
2019-11-17
23 August 2019 – 17 November 2019
2019-11-17
2019-08-23
Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand – MASP (Sao Paulo, Brazil)
2019-08-23
Histories of women
Loan-out
26 September 2022
26 September 2022
2022-09-26
Tate Britain (London, UK)
http://www.tate.org.uk/britain/
2022-09-26
Gallery 15
Collection based display
The Schoolmistress
support: 762 × 914 mm
Presented by Miss Ruth Young 1937
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<p>A young woman in white is shown teaching the children gathered around her. One boy sits absorbed in reading <i>A Pilgrim’s Progress, </i>by John Bunyan. The Christian message of this book is reinforced by the church seen in the distance. Maria Spilsbury often portrayed women in such nurturing roles, reflecting the importance of women educators at this time. Women were especially active in the growing Sunday School movement, which aimed to educate working-class children on Sundays, their one day off. Spilsbury also painted a larger version of this picture (with more overt Christian symbolism) and probably exhibited one of these at the Royal Academy in 1804. At that time, her work was reputedly so popular that carriages would queue outside her London studio. </p>
</div>

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2023-10-26T00:00:00
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actions: expressive adults architecture book - non-specific boy children classroom education educational and scientific education, science and learning features girl group groups interiors landscape landscape - non-specific leisure and pastimes objects people public and municipal reading reading, writing, printed matter recreational activities society student talking teacher window woman work and occupations