Portrait of Mrs Edith (Tilly) Whitaker (1890- 1971)

I was honoured to be commissioned to paint this portrait for the Newington College Art Collection.

Edith Whitaker was Newington College’s first female subject head (and reportedly the first in the GPS). Appointed Head of English in 1942 as part of an effort to replace male teachers who had enlisted during WWII, she was known as a strong disciplinarian who earned deep respect from students and staff.

When she retired in 1949, eighty former and current students attended her farewell dinner, presenting her with a silver teapot and tray, referenced here alongside the Shakespeare volumes in tribute to her life in English education. Edith returned to England where she passed away aged 81 in 1971.