Solita Solano
Encyclopedia
Solita Solano, real name Sarah Wilkinson (born 1888 in Troy, New York
, died 22 November 1975 in Orgeval near Paris
) was an American writer, poet and journalist.
Sarah Wilkinson came from a middle-class family and attended the Emma Willard School
in Troy. After the death of her father she left home and married her childhood sweetheart Oliver Filley. They spent the next four years in the Philippines
, in China
and Japan
, where her husband worked as an engineer. They returned to New York in 1908 where she started work as a theatre critic with the New York Tribune
and as a freelance contributor to the National Geographic Society
. At this time she changed her name to Solita Solano.
In 1919 Solano got to know the journalist Janet Flanner
in Greenwich Village
with whom she started a relationship. In 1921 they travelled to Greece
, where Janet was to work on a report for the "National Geographic" on Constantinople
. Solano had three books published, and as they were not very successful, returned to journalism. In the following year they travelled to France
. In Paris
they joined the intellectuel-lesbian circles of Gertrude Stein
and Alice B. Toklas
, Natalie Clifford Barney
, Romaine Brooks
and Djuna Barnes
. In 1929 Solano had an affair with Margaret Anderson
, founder of The Little Review
, who had come to Paris with her lover, French singer Georgette Leblanc
. The affair lasted several years, though Anderson remained living with Leblanc.
At this time Janet Flanner started writing, under the Pseudonym
Genêt, the Letter from Paris, for The New Yorker
. After the outbreak of World War II Solano and Flanner returned to New York.
A few years later Solano left Flanner after Flanner started an affair with Natalia Danesi Murray; meanwhile Solano fell in love with Elizabeth Jenks Clark. Margaret Anderson got to know Clark through Solano after Clark returned to the US. Clark and Solano became Anderson's closest friends, although Anderson had in the meantime fallen in love with Dorothy Caruso, widow of the singer Enrico Caruso.
During the 1930s and 40s, Solano studied with G. I. Gurdjieff
, and for a while acted as his secretary. She was a member of a key Gurdjieff group known as “The Rope,” to which Jane Heap
, Margaret Anderson, Kathryn Hulme, and Dorothy Caruso also belonged. After Gurdjieff’s death in 1949, Solano became the focal point for members of The Rope until her own death. Her notes of Gurdjieff’s meetings with The Rope are a remarkable record of his personality and method.
After the war Solano returned to France, where she died at the age of 87.
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, died 22 November 1975 in Orgeval near Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
) was an American writer, poet and journalist.
Life
Emma Willard School
The Emma Willard School, originally called Troy Female Seminary and often referred to simply as "Emma," is an independent university-preparatory day and boarding school for young women, located in Troy, New York on Mount Ida, offering grades 9-12 and postgraduate coursework...
in Troy. After the death of her father she left home and married her childhood sweetheart Oliver Filley. They spent the next four years in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, where her husband worked as an engineer. They returned to New York in 1908 where she started work as a theatre critic with the New York Tribune
New York Tribune
The New York Tribune was an American newspaper, first established by Horace Greeley in 1841, which was long considered one of the leading newspapers in the United States...
and as a freelance contributor to the National Geographic Society
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
. At this time she changed her name to Solita Solano.
In 1919 Solano got to know the journalist Janet Flanner
Janet Flanner
Janet Flanner was an American writer and journalist who served as the Paris correspondent of The New Yorker magazine from 1925 until she retired in 1975. She wrote under the pen name "Genêt"...
in Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
with whom she started a relationship. In 1921 they travelled to Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, where Janet was to work on a report for the "National Geographic" on Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. Solano had three books published, and as they were not very successful, returned to journalism. In the following year they travelled to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. In Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
they joined the intellectuel-lesbian circles of Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was an American writer, poet and art collector who spent most of her life in France.-Early life:...
and Alice B. Toklas
Alice B. Toklas
Alice B. Toklas was an American-born member of the Parisian avant-garde of the early 20th century.-Early life, relationship with Gertrude Stein:...
, Natalie Clifford Barney
Natalie Clifford Barney
Natalie Clifford Barney was an American playwright, poet and novelist who lived as an expatriate in Paris....
, Romaine Brooks
Romaine Brooks
Romaine Brooks, born Beatrice Romaine Goddard , was an American painter who worked mostly in Paris and Capri. She specialized in portraiture and used a subdued palette dominated by the color gray...
and Djuna Barnes
Djuna Barnes
Djuna Barnes was an American writer who played an important part in the development of 20th century English language modernist writing and was one of the key figures in 1920s and '30s bohemian Paris after filling a similar role in the Greenwich Village of the teens...
. In 1929 Solano had an affair with Margaret Anderson
Margaret Caroline Anderson
Margaret Caroline Anderson was the American founder, editor and publisher of the art and literary magazine The Little Review, which published a collection of modern American, English and Irish writers between 1914 and 1929...
, founder of The Little Review
The Little Review
The Little Review, an American literary magazine founded by Margaret Anderson, published literary and art work from 1914 to 1929. With the help of Jane Heap and Ezra Pound, Anderson created a magazine that featured a wide variety of transatlantic modernists and cultivated many early examples of...
, who had come to Paris with her lover, French singer Georgette Leblanc
Georgette Leblanc
Georgette Leblanc was a French operatic soprano, actress, author, and the sister of novelist Maurice Leblanc. She became particularly associated with the works of Jules Massenet and was an admired interpreter of the title role in Bizet's Carmen...
. The affair lasted several years, though Anderson remained living with Leblanc.
At this time Janet Flanner started writing, under the Pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Genêt, the Letter from Paris, for The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
. After the outbreak of World War II Solano and Flanner returned to New York.
A few years later Solano left Flanner after Flanner started an affair with Natalia Danesi Murray; meanwhile Solano fell in love with Elizabeth Jenks Clark. Margaret Anderson got to know Clark through Solano after Clark returned to the US. Clark and Solano became Anderson's closest friends, although Anderson had in the meantime fallen in love with Dorothy Caruso, widow of the singer Enrico Caruso.
During the 1930s and 40s, Solano studied with G. I. Gurdjieff
G. I. Gurdjieff
George Ivanovich Gurdjieff according to Gurdjieff's principles and instructions, or the "Fourth Way."At one point he described his teaching as "esoteric Christianity."...
, and for a while acted as his secretary. She was a member of a key Gurdjieff group known as “The Rope,” to which Jane Heap
Jane Heap
Jane Heap was an American publisher and a significant figure in the development and promotion of literary modernism. Together with Margaret Anderson, her friend and business partner , she edited the celebrated literary magazine The Little Review, which published an extraordinary collection of...
, Margaret Anderson, Kathryn Hulme, and Dorothy Caruso also belonged. After Gurdjieff’s death in 1949, Solano became the focal point for members of The Rope until her own death. Her notes of Gurdjieff’s meetings with The Rope are a remarkable record of his personality and method.
After the war Solano returned to France, where she died at the age of 87.