Discovering Rebecca Ann Foster (1867- 1951)

“This story is an extract from a biography of Rebecca Foster currently being written”

The artist R A Foster came into my life quite by chance and for a frustratingly long time s/he remained just that, an artist or more specifically a painter named ‘R A Foster’. I had no idea whether s/he was male or female but I suspected from the style and subject of the paintings s/he may be female although one should never make stereotypical assumptions. After remaining nameless for months it was a eureka moment when I discovered, from an art auction site, that she was actually Rebecca Ann.  I was then able to start searching for further information in earnest knowing that I had a good chance of researching the correct person. I wanted to put a face to the name and create the real person called Rebecca Ann Foster.

The discovery of this name, this person who has come to mean so much to me, was inevitable. Being an avid collector of rose memorabilia and ephemera as well as rose books and paintings it is not surprising that I found the name ‘R A Foster’ on a postcard which showed a vase of colourful roses. I expect at the time I was looking for cards illustrating the rose paintings of  Catharina Klein which I collect. Klein’s cards are easily recognisable and collectible as she has painted over two thousand pictures of flowers and fruit for the postcard publishers. Her cards are from the early years of the 20^th century and bring my love of this period of history, art and flowers together. Over time as I collected these cards I gathered together a chosen selection of other beautiful card paintings of roses by other artists. Cards with the name R A Foster seemed to emerge on a regular basis.

The more cards I found with the distinctive R A Foster signature the more I needed to find out about her as a person. I have discovered many more of Rebecca’s paintings on cards since that very first card while I have been researching into her history. Now I have quite a sizeable collection. This has instigated the catalogue of her cards at the end of this story about her flowers, which I hope will help any future collectors. I must admit although I have  come across several other artists  who were painting roses and other flowers for postcards there are few I like quite so much as hers and no other artists apart from Catharina Klein seem to have been as successful.

The more cards I found with the distinctive R A Foster signature the more I needed to find out about her as a person. I have discovered many more of Rebecca’s paintings on cards since that very first card while I have been researching into her history. Now I have quite a sizeable collection. This has instigated the catalogue of her cards at the end of this story about her flowers, which I hope will help any future collectors. I must admit although I have  come across several other artists  who were painting roses and other flowers for postcards there are few I like quite so much as hers and no other artists apart from Catharina Klein seem to have been as successful.

In the early years of the 20th century, after the printing of postcards allowed for one side to be dedicated to a picture, there was a boom in postcard publishing. When looking at the postcards that have survived from this time today it is evident a large proportion of the British public wanted to send short messages to friends and family, collect cards for their albums or send postcards to others for collecting. The surge in postcard sales was greatest before the first war but it continued into the 1920s to a lesser degree. It was only after the war that Rebecca sold paintings for postcards although evidence shows  she started painting professionally in 1898. Roses, at this time, were also very popular with new varieties being grown, rose shows that exhibited these new plants and the National Rose Society promoting the rose. It was steadily growing in popularity and being supported by a greater cross section of society. More  people generally were becoming interested in gardening and the growing of roses. It is not surprising, therefore, that many flower postcards were dedicated to the rose.

From 1898 Rebecca painted many works, all of flowers as far as I know. I have seen one or two pencil sketches of children by her but no finished works. From 1898, when at art college or soon after until her death in 1951 she painted avidly producing many works for exhibition both at local galleries and those further afield. In later years she painted for the postcard but she did not give up exhibiting her colourful flower paintings. Her paintings must be scattered far and wide adorning the homes of many who appreciate her work. I have a small collection of her original work which I cherish, some prints and many postcards. Further works occasionally come up for sale but not often and strangely they command quite a range of prices.

In this story about her life and her flowers I have tried to encapsulate a talented artist, a keen lover of flowers and a truly successful woman of her time who deserves to be remembered as such. I hope she would approve of what I have to say and to forgive me for any limitations. I have searched for detail from a number of sources but this did not take on a human perspective until I was contacted by her great granddaughter who has helped me with so much knowledge. Information from  ancestry websites, the Nottinghamshire Archives, galleries and auction houses remained specifically factual  until it was placed within a human context.

At the end of the booklet I have listed all the cards, of which I am aware,  that show her paintings. I hope that I have done this in a manner that the collector can tick off the ones s/he has and add any of the many I have not found.