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Miss
Mary, n.d. Kate Seston Matthews was born August 13, 1870 in New Albany, Indiana daughter of Lucien and Charlotte Ann (Clark) Matthews. The family moved to Pewee Valley in Oldham County, Kentucky when Matthews was young. One of eight children and a sickly child, Kate was educated at home. She developed an interest in photography while visiting relatives in Vermont at age 16. Matthew's father purchased for her a camera and tripod upon her return to Kentucky. Largely self-taught, Matthews made photography her life-long career. Her photographs were used in advertisements for periodicals such as Youth's Companion, Illustrated American, and Good Housekeeping and fashion magazines like Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. She is perhaps best known locally for her portrayal of characters from Annie Fellows Johnston's children's series The Little Colonel. Matthews typically posed her subjects in tableaux which depicted literary or mythological characters. The photograph on display is a portrait of Mary Johnston, Pewee Valley citizen and stepdaughter to writer Annie Fellows Johnston. Mary was the subject of many of Matthews' photographs. Kate Matthews lived in Pewee Valley until her death on July 5, 1956. |
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Next | Previous | Home - Artist Index | Sponsors The Kentucky Museum does not hold copyright to the artwork shown on these pages. Contact KyMus@wku.edu for information about obtaining permission to use these images. WKU Home | University Libraries | Special Collections | Kentucky Museum | Exhibits Index November
13, 2001 |
