Choose a mood and the room itself answers — the light cools or warms, the air changes pace, and only the works that carry that feeling step forward from the dark. Everything else recedes into shadow.
Early Life and Education Born: Bessie Ellen Davidson, May 22, 1879, in North Adelaide, South Australia Family Background: Daughter of David Davidson (mining industry) and Ellen Johnson Davidson. Descendant of sculptor William Gowan and painter Frances Gowan. Education: Advanced School for Girls (with a strong drawing strand). Early Training: Studied art with Rose McPherson (Margaret Preston) from 1899. Early Exhibitions: Beg
an exhibiting with the South Australian Society of Arts in 1901. European Studies and Artistic Development Travel to Europe: Traveled to Europe with Margaret Preston in 1904 after her mother's death. Studies in Munich & Paris: Studied at the Künstlerinner Verein, Munich, then Académie de la Grande Chaumière, Paris (under René-Xavier Prinet). Also studied with Raphael Collin, Richard Miller, and Gustave Courtois. Artistic Infl…