Gladys Osborne Reynell Australia, 1881-1956

Gladys Reynell, born in Adelaide in 1881, studied medicine at Adelaide University but left to study painting with Margaret Rose MacPherson (later Margaret Preston). In 1912 Gladys Reynell departed for London accompanied by Margaret Preston, where they both studied pottery at the Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts, London. During the World War I Gladys Reynell and Margaret Preston both taught crafts including pottery to recuperating injured service personnel. Upon their return to Australia in 1919 their joint first exhibition, held in September at Preece's Gallery, Adelaide, included some pottery. At the Reynella Pottery her assistant was George Osborne, the family's gardener, who also began making pots from the clays he dug and prepared. Eventually George was making most of the pots and Gladys doing the decoration. In 1922 they married and moved to Ballarat, Victoria, where they established the Osrey Pottery, an acronym formed from their surnames. Osrey wares enjoyed wide popularity and were sold in Melbourne through the Primrose Pottery Shop. and in Sydney and Adelaide. They ceased making pots after George contracted lead poisoning in 1926.

We have records of art auction sales by Gladys Reynell from 1977 and in total 25 works by the artist have been offered for sale, of which 13 (52%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $9,600 for Village Scene sold by Davidson Auctions in March 2023. No works have been offered for sale this year, and the last sale we have recorded for the artist was in 2023. Works by Gladys Reynell are held by the Art Gallery of South Australia, Art Gallery of NSW and a further four major public national galleries (see list below).