Bull, Mrs

Introduction:

Mrs Bull was a very competent artist, employed by the skilled silhouette artist Mrs Beetham at a time when there was high demand for silhouettes on paper.

No biographical information for Mrs Bull has been discovered. Indeed, only one silhouette has been authenticated and attributed to her, and no printed label. However, this known silhouette does have her inscription on the back. Although Mrs Bull worked for Mrs Beetham, it seems she also had her own studio for a while.

Mrs Bull’s style, as well as that of Mrs Beetham, has been compared to that of Charles Rosenberg. Typically she appears to have worked with clear bust line terminations. Her work may also be recognised by her clear depiction of clothing details; in the one known example, fanned out strokes portray ruffles, frills are edged in clear lines and buttons are delicately depicted. Mrs Bull’s association with Mrs Beetham could be an indication of her style, but the lack of existent examples of her work makes this difficult to determine.