About this lot

Description

Julia Norris (British, 19th Century) Five paper ladies, together with a portrait of Mrs Norris by W Foxley Norris (her father), dated 1887, pencil heightened with white, oval, 15 x 10cm (6 x 4in) and a photograph of Mrs Norris making the paper ladies folded paper (5) Provenance: By descent within the family of the artist Julia Norris pursued an unusual hobby with distinction - from a variety of papers prepared by long soaking, she modelled her paper ladies, fashioning their garments from another stock of papers kept dry and chosen for staying power, and modelling them with a knitting needle and Secotine. Mrs Norris sold these figures for charity and some were even bought by Her Majesty Queen Victoria herself. Julia Norris was a relative of the artist, Dr Thomas Munro. 1.Paper Lady with Fruit Basket Measurements: 8" tall x 3" wide Description: Paper lady with head tilted to right shoulder. Her face and neck are sculpted and she has hollowed eyes, mouth, and some wrinkles on her forehead. She and all her clothes and accessories are entirely made from sculpted and wrapped paper. She is dressed in a long, light-coloured dress with multiple layers of paper enveloped at her neck. Her dress is covered by a cape made with a darker brown paper folded at top edge that runs from her shoulders down her body. Rounded gently around her face is a head covering made with a light-coloured paper. Attached to her waist is a twined, two-stranded paper rope holding a fruit basket made of layers of twined paper with a decorative handle and top edge made of two colours of twined paper. Inside the basket are small fruits and leaves. 2.Paper Lady with Cape with Ruffled Collar Measurements: 7" tall x 4 ½" wide Description: Paper lady with head upright and forward looking; she has a slight grimace on face. Her face and neck are sculpted and she has hollowed eyes, mouth, and some wrinkles on her forehead and cheeks. She and all her clothes and accessories are entirely made from sculpted and wrapped paper. She is dressed in a long, brown-coloured dress with a lighter-coloured apron with three layers of paper at its bottom edge. Her dress is covered by a cape with ruffled collar and ribbon which hangs down at centre, all made with a darker black paper. Rounded gently around her face is a head covering made with a dark-coloured paper. A larger, single sheet of light-coloured (similar to the apron) paper covers the top of her head. * something resembling the "top of a broom" (a bundle of thin, dark-coloured paper sticks bound by a piece of light-coloured twined paper) was found at the bottom of the box. Inside Green "Clarks Shoes" Box: 3.Large Paper Lady Measurements: 9" tall x 6" wide Description: Paper lady with head upright and forward looking. Her face and neck are sculpted and she has hollowed eyes, mouth, and some wrinkles on her forehead. She and all her clothes and accessories are entirely made from sculpted and wrapped paper. She is dressed in a long, white-coloured dress with multiple layers of paper making up her dress skirts. Her dress is covered by a cape made with a darker brown paper folded at top edge that runs from her shoulders down her body. Rounded gently around her face is a head covering beneath a dark brown-coloured bonnet which ties at her neck. Attached to her neck is a twined, two-stranded paper rope. Glued to the front of her dress is a fruit basket made of layers of light-coloured twined paper with a handle and a decorative top edge made of brown twined paper. Inside the basket are small fruit and leaves. 4.Small Paper Lady Measurements: 6" tall x 2" wide Description: Paper lady with head tilted to right shoulder. Her face and neck are sculpted and she has hollowed eyes, mouth, and some wrinkles on her forehead. She and all her clothes and accessories are entirely made from sculpted and wrapped paper. She is dressed in a long, light-coloured dress with and covered by a cape that runs from her shoulders down her body. Rounded gently around her face is a head covering made with a light-coloured paper. Attached, beneath her cape, to her waist is a broom on her right side and a small bag that hangs on her left side. 5.Smallest Paper Lady Measurements: 5" tall x 2 ½ " wide Description: Paper lady with head tilted to left shoulder. Her face and neck are sculpted and she has hollowed eyes, mouth, and some wrinkles on her forehead. She and all her clothes and accessories are entirely made from sculpted and wrapped paper. She is dressed in a long, light-coloured dress with and covered by a cape that runs from her shoulders down her body. Rounded gently around her face is a head covering made with a light-coloured paper. Some bundles of "hair" appear to have once been attached are now unattached from the back of her head. * something resembling a "broom" (a bundle of thin dark colored paper sticks bound by a piece of light colored twined paper and long stick made of light-coloured paper) was found at the bottom of the box. Catalogue Entry: A rare collection of Paper Ladies made entirely from pieces of paper sculpted to form faces, bodies, clothing and accessories. These objects were made by Julia Norris who was married to the rector of Witney, Oxfordshire in ??? (date here). The Paper Ladies are meticulously sculpted and proportionate, exhibiting both the wonderful skillset of their maker and the craftsmanship of women during this period. Each Paper Lady is fashioned with full dress skirts, a cape, headcovering and accessories. Quote from Julia Norris' great grandson, David: "One talent she pursued with distinction. From a variety of papers prepared by long soaking she modelled her paper ladies fashioning their garments from another stock of papers kept dry and chosen for staying power. These figures were sold for charity and some bought by the Queen herself. The charity may have gained regal suppport from one of the rare moments of amusement or from the object's intrinsic merit of originality." Condition: The Paper Ladies are stored in two non-archival boxes and filled with some non-archival tissue to protect and help hold their form while stored. The paper used to make the Paper Ladies' is heavily acidified and demonstrates both some "foxing" and "browning" typical of the acidification of paper goods. There is considerable dust on the surface of each of them. They are in fair-poor condition as per Lucy Commoner's condition rating system. Albeit for textiles, her system applies to these paper objects. The Paper Ladies would benefit from the recommendations below. Recommendations: -surface cleaning -archival storage -preventive conservation steps should be taken to limit light and humidity -integrative pest control management should be put in place to protect them Report prepared by Tatiana Verdon

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