Beyond Bloomsbury

Historical artist and writer biographies.

Beyond Bloomsbury, a painting created for the site by Mary MacCarthy (granddaughter of Bloomsbury Desmond MacCarthy), 2023

Introduction

Welcome to Beyond Bloomsbury, an ongoing collection of historical artist and writer biographies. Thank you for visiting!

I’m Victoria, a historian, writer, and current PhD scholar of early twentieth-century art and literature, with a particular interest in the life and work of the Bloomsbury Group. Before the interdisciplinary PhD, I achieved a first degree in Art History, a post-graduate degree in Film History, and another in Journalism - together with awards from the National Council for the Training of Journalists - and have been working as an arts writer, most recently of academic study guides, for many years.

I launched Beyond Bloomsbury to celebrate the remarkable Bloomsbury Group, their friends and contemporaries, and this incredibly important period in art and literary history. Occasionally, I will also celebrate artists and writers who lived and worked Before Bloomsbury. The collection so far can be viewed in the Archive, with a curated selection of art and words from the Bloomsbury Gallery and the Bloomsbury Library. Thank you for reading!

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Some Lovely Testimonials…

This had me at E.M.Forster. Whether your eyes just lit up, whether you are going "Eh?" or whether you're afraid of Virginia Woolf, this is a great chance to learn more about an extraordinary bunch of writers and artists. Annette Laing, PhD, Historian and Substack newsletter writer of Non-Boring History.

I love the modernists and the writer is clearly passionate about the subject, so it's a delightful read! Julia, Substack writer of Cult Classic.

This is a magical destination that brings back to life the Bloomsbury Group that led the Victorians into the 20th century. It all started with food, wine and talk. I learn something new every time I visit! Robert McDowell, Substack writer of Foodie Poet Cooking for 1

I’ve been an avid Bloomsbury fan for twenty-plus years, own over 30 books and have read many more, but after reading your piece today, I realize how little I’ve actually known about Dora Carrington. Thank you so much.

Wonderful! Thank you so much for these little gems which drop into my inbox. Such a blessed escape from the modern world.