Pinwill sisters

Edmund Pinwill with his daughters and grandchildren (c. 1907)
Rood screen in St Peter's Church, Lewtrenchard, carved by the Pinwill sisters

The Pinwill sisters (consisting of Mary (1871–1962), Ethel (1872–1951) and Violet (1874–1957)) were British professional woodcarvers in Devon from 1890 onwards. Although in their era there were women who produced stained glass, sculpture, wood and metalwork for churches, those women were largely unacclaimed and regarded as amateurs. The profession of ecclesiastical wood carving was one entirely carried out by men. The sisters not only became skilled at the craft, but also set up a professional workshop business. Despite the challenges of two world wars, two fires and the departure of two of the sisters, the Pinwill workshop produced innovative ecclesiastical carvings in wood and stone for more than 60 years and for over 180 churches in Devon, and Cornwall and further afield, becoming one of the most successful wood carving businesses in the South-West of England. Their vast body of work, gradually adapting from the complex, intricate designs of the Gothic Revival through to the pared-down, plainer style of twentieth-century Modern, is recognised as being of great skill, flair and worth.