Georgiana Houghton

by Simon Grant

Georgiana Houghton was a spiritualist medium who, in the 1860s and 1870s, produced a remarkable series of largely abstract watercolours. Detailed explanations on the back of the works declare that her hand was guided by various spirits, including several Renaissance artists and higher angelic beings. In 1871 Houghton rented a gallery in Old Bond Street and presented her 'spirit drawings' to a startled London audience. One critic pronounced it to be "the most astonishing exhibition in London at the present moment". The visual power of the works and their pioneering use of abstract forms make...