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Frederic Marlett Bell-Smith
Canadian, born UK, 1846 - 1923
Frederic Marlett Bell-Smith (1846-1943, b. London, England – d. Toronto)
Frederic Marlett Bell-Smith was a celebrated painter known for his depictions of the Rocky Mountains and the Selkirk Range. Born in England, he studied painting at the South Kensington School of Art, and received lessons from his father, a painter of miniature portraits. His family immigrated to Montreal in 1866, where Bell-Smith found work as an artist and photographer, later moving to Toronto in 1871. For the next two decades he worked as a teacher, illustrator, photographer, actor, writer, and painter. He was employed as the Art Director of Alma College, the Drawing Master at Central Public School, and principal of the Toronto Art School at various times throughout his career.
When the Canadian Pacific Railway offered free travel passes for artists to sketch the Canadian West, Bell-Smith was among the first to accept the opportunity in 1887. His paintings were popular in eastern Canada, prompting Bell-Smith to make frequent trips to the Rocky Mountains for work. Bell-Smith also travelled across France, England, and Holland in his later life. These journeys inspired him to advocate for a Canadian school of art based predominantly on landscape, which is something the Group of Seven and their contemporaries later contributed to as well. Bell-Smith’s work as an artist grew increasingly popular in his later life—he was even granted a private sitting to develop a portrait of Queen Victoria.
Until his death in 1923, Bell-Smith was an active artist and member of numerous arts associations. He was a founding member of the Society of Canadian Artists and the Western Art League. Other groups he was an active member of included the Royal Canadian Academy of Art, the New Water Colour Society of Toronto, and the Ontario Society of Artists. Bell-Smith’s work has been shown across Canada, Great Britain, and the United States.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederic_Marlett_Bell-Smith
http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/bell_smith_frederic_marlett_15E.html
https://canadianart.ca/features/the-return-from-school/
https://www.langmann.com/artists/frederic-marlett-bell-smith
https://mayberryfineart.com/artist/frederic-marlett-bell-smith/
Frederic Marlett Bell-Smith was a celebrated painter known for his depictions of the Rocky Mountains and the Selkirk Range. Born in England, he studied painting at the South Kensington School of Art, and received lessons from his father, a painter of miniature portraits. His family immigrated to Montreal in 1866, where Bell-Smith found work as an artist and photographer, later moving to Toronto in 1871. For the next two decades he worked as a teacher, illustrator, photographer, actor, writer, and painter. He was employed as the Art Director of Alma College, the Drawing Master at Central Public School, and principal of the Toronto Art School at various times throughout his career.
When the Canadian Pacific Railway offered free travel passes for artists to sketch the Canadian West, Bell-Smith was among the first to accept the opportunity in 1887. His paintings were popular in eastern Canada, prompting Bell-Smith to make frequent trips to the Rocky Mountains for work. Bell-Smith also travelled across France, England, and Holland in his later life. These journeys inspired him to advocate for a Canadian school of art based predominantly on landscape, which is something the Group of Seven and their contemporaries later contributed to as well. Bell-Smith’s work as an artist grew increasingly popular in his later life—he was even granted a private sitting to develop a portrait of Queen Victoria.
Until his death in 1923, Bell-Smith was an active artist and member of numerous arts associations. He was a founding member of the Society of Canadian Artists and the Western Art League. Other groups he was an active member of included the Royal Canadian Academy of Art, the New Water Colour Society of Toronto, and the Ontario Society of Artists. Bell-Smith’s work has been shown across Canada, Great Britain, and the United States.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederic_Marlett_Bell-Smith
http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/bell_smith_frederic_marlett_15E.html
https://canadianart.ca/features/the-return-from-school/
https://www.langmann.com/artists/frederic-marlett-bell-smith
https://mayberryfineart.com/artist/frederic-marlett-bell-smith/