Gladys McCabe

Gladys Maccabe RUA ROI FRSA (b.1918)
Gladys Maccabe was born in Randalstown, Co. Antrim, to an artistic couple - her mother Elizabeth was a designer in the linen business, and her father George Chalmers, a former army officer, was an artist specialising in calligraphy and illumination. One of her ancestors was a famous 18th century Scottish painter, Sir George Chalmers. She had a picture published in the Royal Drawing Society's magazine when she was 16 years old and went on to study at the Belfast College of Art. In 1941 she married fellow artist and musician, the late Max Maccabe. Gladys and Max exhibited together on many occasions, starting in Ireland at Robinson & Cleaver in Belfast, 1942, and in England at the Kensington Art Gallery in 1949. Gladys formed the Ulster Society of Women Artists in 1957, and she and her husband were members of the Ulster Contemporary Group which included Dan O'Neill, George Campbell and Gerard Dillon (q.q.v.). In 1961 she was elected a Member of the ROI, and she is also a Royal Ulster Academician, a Fellow of the Royal Fine Arts Society, and has received many honours including the 1984 World Culture Prize. Gladys Maccabe was a fashion and arts correspondent in the 1960s, working for both newspapers and television. Examples of her work are in The Ulster Museum, The Royal Ulster Academy, The Arts Council of Ireland Collection, The Imperial War Museum and many other permanent collections