Madge Gill

1882 - 1961

Born illegitimate in London at the end of the nineteenth century, Madge Gill began drawing in 1919, inspired to create by the encouragement and intervention of her spirit guide, “Myrninerest”. Her initial work was in the form of intense knitting and embroidery, but she later developed her distinctive detailed drawing style. Working predominantly in black pen on card, although at times also using colored inks, her drawings are characterized by geometric chequered patterns and flowing organic ornamentation, interrupted by female faces with staring eyes, their flowing clothing becoming a part of the overall surface design.  Her creations took many forms, from hundreds of small postcards to enormous calico drawings. These calico pieces were worked on gradually, as the length of cloth was slowly unrolled. Despite not being able to see the entire work at one time, Gill managed to maintain a sense of harmony in these larger pieces, with her dense designs, scores of faces, figures and distinctive ornamentation. She exhibited locally in London’s East End and was rumored to have been offered a small London show, but she claimed her work was not hers to sell. She bequeathed her work to her local London borough. ¹