One of the most interesting aspects of Drew-Bear’s work is her attention to detail. This interior with brilliant red floors and bright yellow walls includes a writing desk, a telephone, a notebook, and a magnificently patterned floral sofa. Among other items pinned to the wall are a Women’s National Press Club notice. The large window looks out onto the historic buildings of a great city. Drew-Bear often revisited her canvases. Here she painted over some items that filled the space on the yellow wall over the sofa. Apparently, she was unconcerned if her “erasure” was noticed because her resolute yellow brushstroke overlaps the top of the sofa and obscures the corner of the pillow.
Drew-Bear was fifty-nine years old when she received a paint set from her daughter on Christmas in 1938, beginning a remarkable career as a largely self-taught artist. Born in England, she came to Philadelphia in 1905 and opened the London Flower Shop at 18th and Chestnut Streets, which she owned and operated for more than forty years. Known for sophisticated, high-end arrangements for gala events, she often painted in a second-floor studio above her shop. Drew-Bear briefly studied with Arthur B. Carles and spent a month in French artist Fernand Léger's atelier in 1949. She traveled extensively throughout Europe, Central America, and South America. In her seventies, she learned to scuba dive to paint marine life. Her work was acquired by prestigious collectors Sidney Janis and Albert Duveen.
