Mainie Jellett


Mary Harriet "Mainie" Jellett was an Irish painter whose Decoration was among the first abstract paintings shown in Ireland when it was exhibited at the Society of Dublin Painters Group Show in 1923. She was strong promoter and defender of modern art in her country, her artworks are present in museums in Ireland. Her work was also part of the painting event in the art competition at the 1928 Summer Olympics.

Life

Jellett was born on 29 April 1897 at 36 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin, the daughter of William Morgan Jellett, a barrister and later MP, and Janet McKenzie Stokes. Her aunt was a pioneering woman doctor working in India, Eva Jellett.
Jellett's art education began at a young age of 11, when she received painting lessons from Elizabeth Yeats, Sarah Celia Harrison and from Miss Manning who had a studio on Merrion Row, and whose influence on Irish Artists of the time was considerable.
She later studied at the Metropolitan School of Art in Dublin. Despite her artistic talent, she was still undecided about her future, and at this time was taking regular piano lessons with a view to becoming a concert Pianist.
Her decision to become a painter was made after working under Walter Sickert at the Westminster Technical Institute in London, where she enrolled in 1917 and remained until 1919. She showed precocious talent as an artist in the impressionist style. In 1920, she won the Taylor Art Scholarship worth £50. The same year she submitted work to the annual exhibition of the Royal Hibernian Academy.
In 1921, along with her companion Evie Hone moved to Paris, where, working under André Lhote and Albert Gleizes she encountered cubism and began an exploration of non-representational art. Her new style, including colour and rhythm was greatly inspired by her stay in France. After 1921 she and Evie Hone returned to Dublin but for the next decade they continued to spend part of each year in Paris.
In a 1943 essay entitled 'Definition of my Art' Jellett describes her art as having three revolutions inspired by her teachers; the first credited to Walter Sickert, the second to André Lhote and the third to Albert Gleizes.
In 1923, she exhibited two cubist paintings at the Dublin Painters' Exhibition. The response was hostile, with the Irish Times publishing a photograph of one of the paintings and quoting their art critic as saying of them 'to me they presented an insoluble puzzle'. The following year, she and Evie Hone had their first joint exhibition.
A deeply committed Christian, her paintings, though strictly non-representational, often have religious titles and often resemble icons in tone and palate. In Irish Art, a Concise History Bruce Arnold writes that
Jellett was an important figure in Irish art history, both as an early proponent of abstract art and as a champion of the modern movement. Her painting was often attacked critically but she proved eloquent in defense of her ideas. Along with Evie Hone, Louis le Brocquy, Jack Hanlon and Norah McGuinness, Jellett co-founded the Irish Exhibition of Living Art in 1944.
In her published work "An Approach To Painting" - Jellett stated why she feels artists are necessary in society:
"The idea of an artist being a special person, an exotic flower set apart from other people is one of the errors resulting from the industrial revolution, and the fact of artists being pushed out of their lawful position in the life and society of the present day. … Their present enforced isolation from the majority is a very serious situation and I believe it is one of the many causes which has resulted in the present chaos we live in. The art of a nation is one of the ultimate facts by which its spiritual health is judged and appraised by posterity."
She was an important participant of the Active Age project in the IMMA, which was produced to rewrite the narrative of art change the canon. Jellett whose work was not very well known outside of Ireland but a pioneer when it comes to the idea of avant-garde and being an activist for the encouragement of young Irish artists. The IMMA decides to evaluate and reexamine the European canon and bringing artists like Maine Jellett to the front line. In 1991 Bruce Arnold published a comprehensive biography of Jellett together with an analysis of the modern movement in Ireland.

Death

Jellett died on 16 February 1944, aged 46, of pancreatic cancer.Elizabeth Bowen wrote a heartfelt obitruary which was publish in the periodical The Bell in 1944. She mentions one of their last talks and Jellett mentions the work of a genius Dorothy Richardson, who has yet to receive the recognition she deserves. Till the end showing solidarity to women and standing strong with the feminist movement.

Work in collections

Analysis of Artworks
Allegorical Scene Ulster Museum
Jellett represents a religious scene through the use of geometric elements, typical of post-impressionism. Unfortunately, this work does not have a date to determine when its artistic career was created, whether at the beginning or at the end of it. The focal point of the painting is Christ, placed in the center of the painting where the light is concentrated. The use of colors consistent with reality and perspective is appreciated. Likewise, Jellett's analysis of the image of the human body to find its geometric elements is observed.
Four Element Composition 1925, IMMA
This work was created by Jellett four years after his stay in Paris and his foray into non-figurative art. The title of this painting works as a kind of anchor, since it helps to understand what Jellett wanted to represent, such as the crossing of cold colors, points, lines and forms where each one has its own expression. It is a work that exists independently of reality, loaded with significance of the abstract.
Composition 1932-1935, Ulster Museum
This work was created by Jellett in her maturity, the idea of pure abstraction is appreciated. It does not represent a figurative theme or subject, it has an autonomous visual language, with its own meaning. It exists regardless of reality and of any historical, cultural or geographical burden. The painting is composed by the preponderant combination of curved lines that generates spatial shapes. Likewise, chromatic freedom is appreciated using terracotta, red, gray, blue, yellow, white and black colors.