MIRROR

Description: BRASS FITTINGS. CASE IS WORN ON CORNERS AND AROUND FITTINGS. MAROON WOODEN CASE, WITH BLUE LINING. COVERED WITH FINISHED CLOTH. RING HANDLE.

History: USED IN THE COLLINS FAMILY. DONOR OBTAINED MIRROR FROM BROTHER, GEORGE EDWARD COLLINS, A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF BRITISH ARTISTS. DONOR BORN IN 1884, CAME TO LETHBRIDGE IN 1911. REMEMBERS THE MIRROR AS BOY. DONOR HELPED START THE LETHBRIDGE SKETCH CLUB. SEE FILE FOR HISTORY. *UPDATE* IN 2014 COLLECTIONS ASSISTANT JANE EDMUNDSON CONDUCTED A SURVEY OF ART OBJECTS, INCLUDING SOME CREATED BY THIS ARTIFACT'S DONOR, P.J. COLLINS. SHE COMPILED THE FOLLOWING BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION ON P.J. COLLINS FROM RECORD P20120016001: THE ARTIST, PHILIP JEROME COLLINS, WAS BORN NEAR LONDON, ENGLAND ON AUGUST 14, 1884. HE WAS THE SON OF CHARLES JEROME COLLINS, WHO WAS ALSO AN ARTIST. THERE WERE TEN CHILDREN IN COLLINS FAMILY, NINE BOYS AND ONE GIRL. COLLINS IMMIGRATED WITH HIS BROTHER TO CANADA IN 1911 AT THE AGE OF 27. HE WAS A SCHOOL TEACHER FOR 30 YEARS, BEGINNING HIS CAREER IN 1919 IN RURAL SCHOOLS, AND LATER TEACHING AT CENTRAL WESTMINSTER SCHOOLS. COLLINS WAS A FOUNDING MEMBER OF THE LETHBRIDGE SKETCH CLUB ALONG WITH ARTIST ANNABELLE MCKENZIE, DORA TREW AND JESSIE URSENBACH. COLLINS ATTENDED THE FIRST SKETCH CLUB MEETING THAT WAS HELD ON OCTOBER 7, 1932, AT THE HOME OF MCKENZIE, AND WAS APPOINTED SECRETARY OF THE CLUB. UPON HIS RETIREMENT FROM TEACHING IN JUNE 1949, HE BEGAN PRODUCING PAINTINGS AT THE RATE OF 8 TO 10 PER A YEAR. HIS MEDIUM OF CHOICE WAS OIL ON MASONITE. IN 1966 HE HAD A ONE MAN SHOW AT BOWMAN ARTS CENTRE. COLLINS PASSED AWAY IN 1975.