Maginel Wright Enright Barney
Encyclopedia
Maginel Wright Enright Barney (19 June 1881 – 18 April 1966) was a children's book illustrator and graphic artist, younger sister of Frank Lloyd Wright
, and mother of Elizabeth Enright
, children's book author and illustrator.
, the third child of William and Anna Wright. (The name "Maginel" was a later creation of her mother's, a contraction of "Maggie Nell".) At age 2, she moved with her family moved to Madison, Wisconsin
. Ten years later they moved to Chicago
to be closer to Frank's architectural work. Later she attended the Chicago Art Institute. Her first job as a commercial artist was with the Barnes, Crosby Co. of Chicago, where her main task was catalogue illustration; there she met, and later married, another young artist named Walter J. Enright (nicknamed "Pat").
(Frank Lloyd Wright left a mordant account of his sister's wedding. The groom's mother fainted, the bride's father wept — and so did the minister, who was the bride's and Wright's Uncle Jenkin. The newly married Enrights went to visit the bride's mother's family in Wisconsin, a visit that provided the title to Wright Enright's late memoir, The Valley of the God-Almighty Joneses.)
Maginel Wright Enright gave birth to her daughter Elizabeth on Sept. 17, 1909, in Oak Park, Illinois
.
, a set of six booklets for young children published by Reilly & Britton
in 1906, and written by L. Frank Baum
under the pseudonym "Laura Bancroft." The books were successful, selling 40,000 copies the first year. Wright Enright also illustrated Baum's Policeman Bluejay
(1907) and L. Frank Baum's Juvenile Speaker
(1910, with John R. Neill
). (Her husband also worked on the Baum canon: Walter Enright illustrated Baum's Father Goose's Year Book
in 1907.)
She also illustrated editions of Johanna Spyri
's Heidi
(1921) and Mary Mapes Dodge
's Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates
(with Edna Cooke, 1918). She was acclaimed as one of "the very best artists" for children.
She wrote and illustrated The Baby's Record Through the First Year in Song and Story (1928), and compiled and illustrated Weather Signs and Rhymes (1931). She also illustrated textbooks for children, mainly readers for younger children. Her daughter Elizabeth Enright credits Wright Enright with "the revolutionizing of textbook illustration" with lively, graceful, and imaginative picture that appealed to young readers.
and the Ladies' Home Journal
. She also designed Christmas cards and did various and miscellaneous sorts of artwork. In her memoir Tales of Taliesin, Cornelia Brierley recalls Maginel, "full of fun and very sophisticated," spending summers with her daughter Elizabeth ("Bitsy") at her brother's establishment at Taliesin
, designing and making "yarn paintings" that she later sold in New York.
After her divorce from Enright, she married lawyer Hiram Barney. Her autobiography, The Valley of the God-Almighty Joneses, was published in 1965, one year before her death in East Hampton, New York
.
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...
, and mother of Elizabeth Enright
Elizabeth Enright
Elizabeth Enright was an American children's author and illustrator. She was born in Oak Park, Illinois.-Life:Her father, Walter J...
, children's book author and illustrator.
Early life
She was born Margaret Ellen Wright in Weymouth, MassachusettsWeymouth, Massachusetts
The Town of Weymouth is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2010 census, Weymouth had a total population of 53,743. Despite its city status, it is formally known as the Town of Weymouth...
, the third child of William and Anna Wright. (The name "Maginel" was a later creation of her mother's, a contraction of "Maggie Nell".) At age 2, she moved with her family moved to Madison, Wisconsin
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
. Ten years later they moved to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
to be closer to Frank's architectural work. Later she attended the Chicago Art Institute. Her first job as a commercial artist was with the Barnes, Crosby Co. of Chicago, where her main task was catalogue illustration; there she met, and later married, another young artist named Walter J. Enright (nicknamed "Pat").
(Frank Lloyd Wright left a mordant account of his sister's wedding. The groom's mother fainted, the bride's father wept — and so did the minister, who was the bride's and Wright's Uncle Jenkin. The newly married Enrights went to visit the bride's mother's family in Wisconsin, a visit that provided the title to Wright Enright's late memoir, The Valley of the God-Almighty Joneses.)
Maginel Wright Enright gave birth to her daughter Elizabeth on Sept. 17, 1909, in Oak Park, Illinois
Oak Park, Illinois
Oak Park, Illinois is a suburb bordering the west side of the city of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is the twenty-fifth largest municipality in Illinois. Oak Park has easy access to downtown Chicago due to public transportation such as the Chicago 'L' Blue and Green lines,...
.
Book illustration
It was under the name of Maginel Wright Enright that she conducted her professional career. She illustrated 63 children's books during her lifetime, sometimes working alone and sometimes with other artists. Her first job as book illustrator was on The Twinkle TalesThe Twinkle Tales
The Twinkle Tales is a 1905 series by L. Frank Baum, published under the pen name Laura Bancroft. The six stories were issued in separate booklets by Baum's publisher Reilly & Britton, with illustrations by Maginel Wright Enright...
, a set of six booklets for young children published by Reilly & Britton
Reilly & Britton
The Reilly and Britton Company, or Reilly & Britton was an American publishing company of the early and middle 20th century, famous as the publisher of the works of L. Frank Baum.-Founding:...
in 1906, and written by L. Frank Baum
L. Frank Baum
Lyman Frank Baum was an American author of children's books, best known for writing The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
under the pseudonym "Laura Bancroft." The books were successful, selling 40,000 copies the first year. Wright Enright also illustrated Baum's Policeman Bluejay
Policeman Bluejay
Policeman Bluejay is a children's novel written by L. Frank Baum and illustrated by Maginel Wright Enright. First published in 1907, it has been considered one of the best of Baum's works.-The book:...
(1907) and L. Frank Baum's Juvenile Speaker
L. Frank Baum's Juvenile Speaker
L. Frank Baum's Juvenile Speaker: Readings and Recitations in Prose and Verse, Humorous and Otherwise is an anthology of literary works by L. Frank Baum, author of the Oz books. The book was first published in 1910, with illustrations by veteran Baum artists John R. Neill and Maginel Wright...
(1910, with John R. Neill
John R. Neill
John Rea Neill was a magazine and children's book illustrator primarily known for illustrating more than forty stories set in the Land of Oz, including L. Frank Baum's, Ruth Plumly Thompson's, and three of his own. His pen-and-ink drawings have become identified almost exclusively with the Oz series...
). (Her husband also worked on the Baum canon: Walter Enright illustrated Baum's Father Goose's Year Book
Father Goose's Year Book
Father Goose's Year Book: Quaint Quacks and Feathered Shafts for Mature Children is a collection of humorous nonsense poetry written by L. Frank Baum, author of the Oz books. It was published in 1907.The book was illustrated by Walter J...
in 1907.)
She also illustrated editions of Johanna Spyri
Johanna Spyri
Johanna Spyri was an author of children's stories, and is best known for her book Heidi. Born Johanna Louise Heusser in the rural area of Hirzel, Switzerland, as a child she spent several summers in the area around Chur in Graubünden, the setting she later would use in her novels.-Biography:In...
's Heidi
Heidi
Heidi is a Swiss work of fiction, published in two parts as Heidi's years of learning and travel and Heidi makes use of what she has learned.It is a novel about the events in the life of a young girl in her grandfather's care, in the Swiss Alps...
(1921) and Mary Mapes Dodge
Mary Mapes Dodge
Mary Mapes Dodge was an American children's writer and editor, best known for her novel Hans Brinker.-Biography:...
's Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates
Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates
Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates is a novel by American author Mary Mapes Dodge, first published in 1865...
(with Edna Cooke, 1918). She was acclaimed as one of "the very best artists" for children.
She wrote and illustrated The Baby's Record Through the First Year in Song and Story (1928), and compiled and illustrated Weather Signs and Rhymes (1931). She also illustrated textbooks for children, mainly readers for younger children. Her daughter Elizabeth Enright credits Wright Enright with "the revolutionizing of textbook illustration" with lively, graceful, and imaginative picture that appealed to young readers.
Other work
In addition to book illustration, Wright Enright was a magazine illustrator and cover artist, working mostly for women's magazines like McClure'sMcClure's
McClure's or McClure's Magazine was an American illustrated monthly periodical popular at the turn of the 20th century. The magazine is credited with creating muckraking journalism. Ida Tarbell's series in 1902 exposing the monopoly abuses of John D...
and the Ladies' Home Journal
Ladies' Home Journal
Ladies' Home Journal is an American magazine which first appeared on February 16, 1883, and eventually became one of the leading women's magazines of the 20th century in the United States...
. She also designed Christmas cards and did various and miscellaneous sorts of artwork. In her memoir Tales of Taliesin, Cornelia Brierley recalls Maginel, "full of fun and very sophisticated," spending summers with her daughter Elizabeth ("Bitsy") at her brother's establishment at Taliesin
Taliesin (studio)
Taliesin , near Spring Green, Wisconsin, was the summer home of American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright began the building in 1911 after leaving his first wife, Catherine Tobin, and his Oak Park, Illinois, home and studio in 1909. The impetus behind Wright's departure was his affair with...
, designing and making "yarn paintings" that she later sold in New York.
After her divorce from Enright, she married lawyer Hiram Barney. Her autobiography, The Valley of the God-Almighty Joneses, was published in 1965, one year before her death in East Hampton, New York
East Hampton (town), New York
The Town of East Hampton is located in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, at the eastern end of the South Shore of Long Island. It is the easternmost town in the state of New York...
.