Rosa Brett

[Bunny] 1873

pencil on paper

Born in Camberwell in 1829 though she grew up in Dublin where her Father was an Army Surgeon. She had three brothers. In the early 1840's the family seem to have moved to Manchester but by 1850 were in Kent where she then lived until her death. She was self-taught (with her brother John, much better known) and studied nature. She is known to have spent 1854-5 in Belgium, apparently recovering from a serious illness. Her first exhibition was in 1858 under the pseudonym Rosarius which she retained until 1862. She never seems to have sold much and was probably restricted in her development by her status as an unmarried daughter. She painted in oils and watercolour and did landscapes and animal studies. Her last recorded exhibition was in 1881 and she died in July 1882.