Mildred Anne Butler was a landscape painter. She was one of the first professional female artists in Ireland.
Mildred Anne was born in 1858. She spent most of her life at the family home, Kilmurry, in Co. Kilkenny. This was a Georgian house, surrounded by meadows and a lake. It also had a beautiful garden.
Mildred's watercolour paintings often show birds, animals and plants from the area.
Meditation, 1889
'Meditation' by Mildred Anne Butler, 1889. Watercolour, 14 x 21 inch.
Courtesy of Mark Adams Fine ArtMeditation, 1889
Courtesy of Mark Adams Fine Art
Courtesy of Mark Adams Fine Art
Meditation, 1889
'Meditation' by Mildred Anne Butler, 1889. Watercolour, 14 x 21 inch.
Courtesy of Mark Adams Fine ArtMildred Anne went to Brussels and Paris to study art. In 1896, her painting Morning Bath was bought by the Tate Gallery in London. This was a great honour for a female artist at that time.
Mildred Anne's art became very popular. Queen Alexandra of Demark bought one of her paintings in 1910. In 1924, she also painted a tiny watercolour of rooks for Queen Mary's doll's house.
Eventually Mildred Anne had to give up painting. This was because she had a lot of pain in her hands. She died in 1941.
Some of Mildred Anne's paintings are in the National Gallery of Ireland, the Ulster Museum and the Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery in Dublin.