Odile Crick (11 August 1920 – 5 July 2007) was a British artist best known for her drawing of the double helix structure of DNA discovered by her husband Francis Crick and his partner James D. Watson in 1953.[1]
Odile Crick was born as Odile Speed in King's Lynn, Norfolk, England, to a French mother, Marie-Therese Josephine Jaeger and an English father, Alfred Valentine Speed, who was a jeweller.[1] She was an art student in Vienna when the Nazis occupied Austria in 1938.[2] Returning to England, Speed joined the Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS) as a lorry driver. However, her skills in German led to work as a code-breaker and translator at the Admiralty where she met Francis Crick in 1945.[2] After the war, she finished her art studies at St. Martin's in London.
Life with Crick in Britain
Odile Speed married Francis Crick in 1949 and lived in Cambridge. Odile Crick worked as a teacher at what is now Anglia Ruskin University before the births of her daughters Gabrielle and Jacqueline.[3]
Francis Crick and James Watson asked her to draw an illustration of the double helix for their paper on DNA for Nature in 1953.[4] The sketch was reproduced widely in textbooks and scientific articles and has become the symbol for molecular biology.[1] Terrence J. Sejnowski of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies said, "It may be the most famous [scientific] drawing of the 20th century, in that it defines modern biology."[2]
However, she was not aware at first of the importance of the discovery. In his memoir What Mad Pursuit, Crick said that she had told him later "You were always coming home and saying things like that, so naturally I thought nothing of it."[1]
Several exhibitions have been held of Crick's paintings of curvaceous nudes. Her models included their au pairs for the children and her husband's secretaries.[3]
The Cricks became famous for their parties in the 1960s either in Cambridge or at a cottage near Haverhill. At one party, a nude model posed on a couch to encourage their guests to become amateur painters.[3]
Odile Crick outlived her husband and died from cancer in La Jolla, California, aged 86.[3] The Odile Crick Memorial Exhibition of her art was held at the Salk Institute, La Jolla, on 12 October 2007.
She was survived by a brother Philippe, her two daughters Gabrielle and Jacqueline (1954–2011), two grandchildren, and her stepson, Michael.
Notes
^ abcde"Odile Crick, Who Drew Iconic Double Helix, Dies at 86" 2013-04-12 at the Wayback Machine, New York Times, 30 July 2007
^ abcBernstein, Adam (21 July 2007). "Odile Crick; Sketched Model of Husband's Discovery About DNA". The Washington Post. from the original on 13 February 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
^Watson, J. D.; Crick, F. H. (Apr 25, 1953). "Molecular structure of nucleic acids; a structure for deoxyribose nucleic acid". Nature. 171 (4356): 737–738. Bibcode:1953Natur.171..737W. doi:10.1038/171737a0. PMID 13054692. S2CID 4253007. Retrieved Apr 6, 2020 – via PubMed.
Resources
Robert Olby; Oxford National Dictionary article: 'Crick, Francis Harry Compton (1916–2004)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, January 2008;
Matt Ridley; Francis Crick: Discoverer of the Genetic Code (Eminent Lives) first published in June 2006 in the US and in the UK September 2006, by HarperCollins Publishers; 192 pp, ISBN0-06-082333-X.
January 06, 2023
odile, crick, august, 1920, july, 2007, british, artist, best, known, drawing, double, helix, structure, discovered, husband, francis, crick, partner, james, watson, 1953, contents, early, life, life, with, crick, britain, life, california, notes, resourcesear. Odile Crick 11 August 1920 5 July 2007 was a British artist best known for her drawing of the double helix structure of DNA discovered by her husband Francis Crick and his partner James D Watson in 1953 1 Contents 1 Early life 2 Life with Crick in Britain 3 Life in California 4 Notes 5 ResourcesEarly life EditOdile Crick was born as Odile Speed in King s Lynn Norfolk England to a French mother Marie Therese Josephine Jaeger and an English father Alfred Valentine Speed who was a jeweller 1 She was an art student in Vienna when the Nazis occupied Austria in 1938 2 Returning to England Speed joined the Women s Royal Naval Service WRNS as a lorry driver However her skills in German led to work as a code breaker and translator at the Admiralty where she met Francis Crick in 1945 2 After the war she finished her art studies at St Martin s in London Life with Crick in Britain EditOdile Speed married Francis Crick in 1949 and lived in Cambridge Odile Crick worked as a teacher at what is now Anglia Ruskin University before the births of her daughters Gabrielle and Jacqueline 3 Francis Crick and James Watson asked her to draw an illustration of the double helix for their paper on DNA for Nature in 1953 4 The sketch was reproduced widely in textbooks and scientific articles and has become the symbol for molecular biology 1 Terrence J Sejnowski of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies said It may be the most famous scientific drawing of the 20th century in that it defines modern biology 2 However she was not aware at first of the importance of the discovery In his memoir What Mad Pursuit Crick said that she had told him later You were always coming home and saying things like that so naturally I thought nothing of it 1 Several exhibitions have been held of Crick s paintings of curvaceous nudes Her models included their au pairs for the children and her husband s secretaries 3 The Cricks became famous for their parties in the 1960s either in Cambridge or at a cottage near Haverhill At one party a nude model posed on a couch to encourage their guests to become amateur painters 3 Life in California EditWhen her husband became a professor at the Salk Institute in the 1970s 1 the Cricks moved to California Odile Crick outlived her husband and died from cancer in La Jolla California aged 86 3 The Odile Crick Memorial Exhibition of her art was held at the Salk Institute La Jolla on 12 October 2007 She was survived by a brother Philippe her two daughters Gabrielle and Jacqueline 1954 2011 two grandchildren and her stepson Michael Notes Edit a b c d e Odile Crick Who Drew Iconic Double Helix Dies at 86 Archived 2013 04 12 at the Wayback Machine New York Times 30 July 2007 a b c Bernstein Adam 21 July 2007 Odile Crick Sketched Model of Husband s Discovery About DNA The Washington Post Archived from the original on 13 February 2016 Retrieved 2 February 2016 a b c d Odile Crick Archived 2007 08 25 at the Wayback Machine full citation needed The Independent 20 July 2007 Watson J D Crick F H Apr 25 1953 Molecular structure of nucleic acids a structure for deoxyribose nucleic acid Nature 171 4356 737 738 Bibcode 1953Natur 171 737W doi 10 1038 171737a0 PMID 13054692 S2CID 4253007 Retrieved Apr 6 2020 via PubMed Resources EditRobert Olby Oxford National Dictionary article Crick Francis Harry Compton 1916 2004 Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Oxford University Press January 2008 Robert Olby Crick A Biography Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press ISBN 978 0 87969 798 3 to be published in August 2009 Matt Ridley Francis Crick Discoverer of the Genetic Code Eminent Lives first published in June 2006 in the US and in the UK September 2006 by HarperCollins Publishers 192 pp ISBN 0 06 082333 X Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Odile Crick amp oldid 1085843257, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
