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Doris Chapman

1903 – 1990

British artist and prehistorian

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About Doris Chapman

Lived 1903 – 1990 (aged 86–87). Doris Chapman was a painter, archaeologist, writer and prehistorian.

Doris Emerson Chapman (1903 – 1990) was a British artist and prehistorian. She trained in Paris and then exhibited paintings in London during the 1920s and 1930s. She was associated with the Bloomsbury Group. She then joined the Morven Institute of Archaeological Research to draw the megaliths of Avebury and produced measured drawings as they were excavated. In 1939 she wrote a guidebook titled Is This Your First Visit to Avebury?.

She also pioneered artistic facial reconstruction from skulls and in 1939 she published several illustrations of individuals from Lanhill long barrow in The Illustrated London News.

Personal life Chapman had a relationship with the author, psychoanalyst, and younger brother of Virginia Woolf, Adrian Stephen. The couple became increasingly estranged from the beginning of the war, when the Institute closed, although they would not divorce until 1951.

Chapman became a nurse in London and then married again in 1951, becoming Doris Chalmers.

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Important facts

Born
1903
Birth century
Died
1990
Also known as
Doris Emerson Chapman, Doris Keiller, Doris Chalmers, D. Chapman, DEC

People in Doris Chapman's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Doris Chapman's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Doris Chapman?

British artist and prehistorian

When was Doris Chapman born?

Doris Chapman was born in 1903.

When did Doris Chapman die?

Doris Chapman died in 1990.

What was Doris Chapman's occupation?

Doris Chapman was a painter, archaeologist, writer and prehistorian.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Doris Chapman

· Wikidata: Q21556626

· DBpedia: Doris Emerson Chapman

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Doris Chapman. https://biography.guide/doris-chapman/

MLA: "Doris Chapman." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/doris-chapman/.

Chicago: "Doris Chapman." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/doris-chapman/.

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