TELEPHONE OPERATOR’S PAINTINGS OF HORSES

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28690, 13 September 1958, Page 2

TELEPHONE OPERATOR’S PAINTINGS OF HORSES

Miss Joan Harrington, a 23-year-old telephone operator in the Christchurch Post Office, has the unusual hobby of painting watercolour pictures of horses. Born in Christchurch, and educated at Sacred Heart Girls’ College, Miss Harrington received her only training in art at school, where she was taught to use both water colour and oils.

Miss Harrington’s interest in riding and horses dates from when she. was gged three, and, without the knowledge of her parents, caught and rode a calf. Since then, a lot of her time has been spent riding and training horses.

When she was 15, Miss Harrington went to the Chatham Islands, where her father was manager of a large sheep station. Returning to Christchurch with her family two years ago, she developed an interest in water-colour painting, when as a result of a bad fall, she was unable to take such an active interest in riding horses. Miss Harrington does all her painting from photographs, as she has had no success in train-

mg her horses to keep a pose long enough for her to make more than a rough sketch. Miss Harrington’s interests are not confined to riding, training and painting horses. 'She will take a ballroom dancing examination shortly, and for this she is designing, embroidering, and making an evening frock—about six months’ work in all. She has a collection of unusual earrings—56 pairs—and what little spare time she has from these activities she spends doing silk embroidery.