The Crease family and the arts in Victoria, British Columbia
Date
1980
Authors
Johnson-Dean, Christina B.
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Abstract
The work of amateurs, particularly women, has been constant and prolific in the history of watercolour painting in Great Britain and many of the nations that have grown from its colonies. Seldom the focus of scholarly investigation, the amateur's life and work can nevertheless reveal important aspects of social history, showing the typical and contemporary interpretation and practice of ideas envisioned and initiated by the historically prominent. The history of the arts and crafts, especially of watercolour painting, in Victoria, British Columbia, as seen through the diaries of Josephine Crease (1864-1947), discloses a view of the social elite and their involvement in the arts. Their attitudes and work were essential to keeping the arts alive and to bringing them into the realm of greater public access and participation. Though their prominence in the art circles of Victoria was eventually superseded by more professionally oriented and publicly funded institutions, their kind of effort was the foundation on which many of our modern art organizations are based. Furthermore, this select study of Canadian history reflects a broader picture of transition, not only in the arts, but in social structure , especially in the role and status of women in Great Britain and North America.
Henry Pering Pellew Crease, a barrister, came to British Columbia from England in 1858; his wife Sarah Crease (née Lindley) and their three daughters , Mary Maberly, Susan Reynolds, and Barbara Lindley, followed in 1860 Three more children were born and survived infancy in British Columbia - Josephine, Lindley, and Arthur Douglas . H.P.P. Crease was soon prominent as a Judge , and his family became part of the social elite of Victoria . They all sketched, but it was Josephine who became the most involved with the arts in Victoria, particularly in the organization known as the Island Arts and Crafts Society.