Description
Eileen Lucy ‘Tirzah’ Garwood (1908 – 1951) was an English wood-engraver and artist whose creative talent has largely been overshadowed by the achievements of her artist husband, Eric Ravilious.The third of five children (and nicknamed Tertia which became Tirzah), Garwood studied at the Eastbourne School of Art under Reeves Fawkes, Oliver Senior and – as a wood engraver – the young Eric Ravilious. In her early career she created memorable and technically astute wood-engravings, producing tender renditions of the humble garden insect as well as humorous, satirical scenes of everyday life.
In the interwar years, whilst living in the English village of Great Bardfield with Ravilious and their circle of artist friends, Garwood began experimenting with repeat pattern design (for the Curwen Press, The Golden Cockerel Press and the Kynoch Press) and later marbling, which she sold through enterprises such as Muriel Rose’s The Little Gallery.
Her final and perhaps best-known works are her oil paintings. All made after 1944, these extraordinary works are set in English homes, gardens and rural landscapes, imbued with uncanny, sometimes surreal moments, and often include joyful and surprising elements, such as miniature figurines, dolls and children’s toys.
