Exiles from Erin'

Fanny McIan (1814 – 1897). Oil painting on canvas, 'Exiles from Erin' (Ireland) by Fanny McIan (1814 – 1897), 1838. A family standing on a rock, a palm tree visible behind. On a box at their feet is inscribed; 'Fanny McIan/1838'. The father stands beside his seated wife who holds a baby. Two other children sir beside them, all very melancholy. Label on the back inscribed, 'Exiles from Erin/by Mrs McJan/7 Grafton St./Fitzroy Sq.' The artist was the wife of the artist Robert Ranald McIan (1803-1856). She taught and painted at the Government School of Design and was the first woman artist in Scotland to become an Honorary RSA (Royal Scottish Academy) in 1854. Calke Abbey, Derbyshire (Accredited Museum)