Kelly, Annie Elizabeth (1877–1946)
Kelly, Annie Elizabeth (1877–1946)
New Zealand painter. Name variations: Annie Elizabeth Abbott. Born Annie Elizabeth Abbott, April 12, 1877, at Knightstown, Christchurch, New Zealand; died Oct 4, 1946, at Christchurch; dau. of Thomas George Abbott (nurseryman) and Maud Laura (Mason) Abbott; m. Cecil Fletcher Kelly (artist), 1908.
Studied and taught art at Canterbury School of Art (late 1890s–1904); taught privately from 1905; painted landscapes with husband, and exhibited figurative work, gaining recognition as a portrait painter; traveled to Europe and closely followed English style of portrait painting; returned to New Zealand and gained fame for paintings of fashionable Canterbury society women (1920s); exhibited at Royal Academy of Arts, Royal Society of Portrait Painters, and Royal Scottish Academy in Edinburgh (1931); won silver medal at Paris Salon (1934). Made Commander of the British Empire (1946).
See also Dictionary of New Zealand Biography (Vol. 3).