ANNIE POSED for the camera in a field near her home on Hayling Island about 1930, and the images have appeared in various sources since. This particular image, previously unseen by myself, appeared on Ebay recently, as a cutting from an unidentified paper. In all the others photos I’ve seen she is sitting down looking at the camera or petting a German Shepherd.
Image: private collection.
THE GLOW WORM is an image often attributed to Annie on web pages, but bears nothing of her style. It does resemble the style of uncle and nephew artists Arthur (1832-1915) and Edward Robert Hughes (1851-1914), particularly the latter.
I’ve no stronger evidence than my personal impressions on this – background detail, brick-red hair and general posing of figures, but in Edwards’ watercolour Midsummer Eve (private collection, exhibited Birmingham Art Gallery, 2015-2016) he does include glow worms.
Jonathan Russell
ANNIE LOUISA SWYNNERTON (1844-1933) 