Pamela Colman Smith
Pamela Colman Smith (1878–1951) was an artist, illustrator, writer and editor. She created the pictures for the tarot deck commissioned by Arthur Edward Waite in 1909, commonly called the Rider–Waite–Smith deck. Her career also included book illustration, theatre design and publishing.[1][2]
Art and publishing
Smith was born in London to American parents and spent parts of her childhood in England, the United States and Jamaica. She studied at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. Her work brought her into contact with Ellen Terry, Bram Stoker and W. B. Yeats.[2]
She wrote and illustrated Annancy Stories (1899) and Chim-Chim: Folk Stories from Jamaica (1905). With Jack Yeats she worked on A Broad Sheet, before editing her own illustrated periodical, The Green Sheaf (1903–1904). The latter published poetry, prose and pictures by several writers and artists in her circle.[1]
Smith also contributed poster and cartoon designs to the Suffrage Atelier's campaign for women's voting rights.[2]
Golden Dawn and Waite
Smith joined the Golden Dawn in 1901. During its subsequent divisions she associated herself with Waite's Independent and Rectified Rite.[1]
Waite's 1909 commission led to the deck published that year by William Rider and Son. Smith's illustrations are the basis for the inclusion of her name in the designation Rider–Waite–Smith.[1] Her connection with Waite developed within their Golden Dawn circle.[2]
Surviving records
Bryn Mawr College holds seventeen letters from Smith to her cousin Mary B. Reed, written between 1896 and 1900, with drawings and related material. They record her work on amateur plays, stage scenery, costumes and book illustrations. A December 1899 letter signed ‘Pixie Pamela’ attributes the nickname to Ellen Terry.[3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Dennis Denisoff, ‘Pamela Colman Smith (1878–1951)’, Y90s Biographies, Yellow Nineties 2.0, edited by Lorraine Janzen Kooistra (2019).
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Claire Gilman, ‘British Occult Revival: Pamela Coleman Smith before Waite’, Morgan Library & Museum, online exhibition commentary. The exhibition heading spells her middle name ‘Coleman’; the artist used ‘Colman’.
- ↑ Bryn Mawr College Special Collections, ‘Pamela Colman Smith collection, 1896–1900’, M47, finding aid, especially the descriptions of letters to Mary B. Reed.
| Rosicrucian history and related societies | |
|---|---|
| Overview | Rosicrucians · Christian Rosencreutz · SRIA · Golden Dawn |
| Early texts | Fama · Confessio · Chymical Wedding |
| People | William Wynn Westcott · Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers · William Robert Woodman · Arthur Edward Waite · Pamela Colman Smith |
| Related reading | Comparing the traditions · All articles in this section |