Dr Cox was the port health officer in Shanghai, who was also an amateur geologist and modelled in clay.
[1] Those years living in China left an impression on the young Cox, visually and culturally.
Whilst there she studied sculpture under Oliver Sheppard and was considered one of his most talented students, winning the Royal Dublin Society Taylor prize for modelling in 1925, 1926, and 1927.
She established a pottery studio at 7 Schoolhouse Lane, Dublin, with college friend Stella Rayner in 1929.
Davidson was a friend and neighbour, who commissioned Cox to design the poster for his 1929 film, Suicide.
[3] In 1932, Cox began producing a line of more commercial figurines, drawing influence from the Royal Doulton Burslem factory, where she worked for a time.
In the mid 1930s, Cox developed a frustration with her work and with her lack of impact on the wider world.