Frederic Marlett Bell-Smith
Encyclopedia
Frederic Marlett Bell-Smith (September 26, 1846 – June 23, 1923) was a Canadian
landscape painter best known for his works of the Rocky Mountains
and the Selkirk Range.
Bell-Smith emigrated to Canada from England in 1866. He had studied painting in England and worked as an artist and photographer in Montreal
until 1871, when he moved to Toronto
. Throughout the 1870s and 1880s he sketched, painted, and taught art classes in Toronto, Hamilton
, and London, Ontario
.
In 1886 Bell-Smith seized the opportunity to paint the Canadian Rockies when the Vice-President of the Canadian Pacific Railway
(CPR), William Cornelius Van Horne
, offered free travel passes to several artists who would sketch and paint vistas of the Canadian west. The CPR wanted artistic works that would heighten public interest in transcontinental travel. Bell-Smith’s stylistically conservative paintings were popular in both eastern Canada and Britain, and he frequently returned to the west to work. He was particularly fond of the natural splendour of the area around Lake Louise
and by the turn of the century he made annual trips to the west.
These experiences led Bell-Smith to advocate a Canadian school of art which drew its uniqueness from the use of the Canadian landscape as its subject matter. Later artists, including Tom Thomson
, Emily Carr
, and the Group of Seven
, contributed to this focus on Canada’s natural environment in art.
Bell-Smith also created many paintings of late Victorian and Edwardian eastern Canada and Britain. One of his most famous and playful paintings is Lights of a City Street, which portrays the intersection of Yonge and King Streets in Toronto in 1894. Bell-Smith depicted himself in the painting as the man buying a newspaper, his son is the man raising his hat, and the policeman is Bill Redford, the constable actually stationed at the corner.
In connection with a series of paintings related to the death of Prime Minister Sir John Thompson in 1894, Bell-Smith managed to negotiate a sitting with Queen Victoria, who normally disliked having her portrait taken by anyone aside from a few select photographers. According to Bell-Smith, he followed the advice of a Canadian senator to approached Lord Clinton and Hafiz Abdul Karim about a sitting with the Queen, but received discouraging replies from both men. Bell-Smith was able to obtain sittings with Princesses Beatrice and Louise, whose husband, the Marquis of Lorne, was a former Governor General of Canada and an advocate of Bell-Smith. The Princesses used their influence to persuade the Queen to sit for Bell-Smith. The cordial sitting lasted for over an hour, during which Queen Victoria permitted Bell-Smith to position her as he wished. Princess Louise, an artist herself, offered Bell-Smith advice. The Queen also spoke to her daughters and other attendants about her grandchildren (mostly in German). At the end of the sitting, the Queen approved Bell-Smith’s work. This anecdotal episode demonstrated Bell-Smith’s influence and popularity in Britain. Indeed, Bell-Smith contemplated moving to Britain in the 1890s, but he decided to divide his time between Canada and Europe.
Bell-Smith continued to paint until his death, although he was less active towards the end of his life.
He was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts
.
]
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
landscape painter best known for his works of the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
and the Selkirk Range.
Bell-Smith emigrated to Canada from England in 1866. He had studied painting in England and worked as an artist and photographer in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
until 1871, when he moved to Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
. Throughout the 1870s and 1880s he sketched, painted, and taught art classes in Toronto, Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, and London, Ontario
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
.
In 1886 Bell-Smith seized the opportunity to paint the Canadian Rockies when the Vice-President of the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
(CPR), William Cornelius Van Horne
William Cornelius Van Horne
Sir William Cornelius Van Horne, KCMG was a pioneering Canadian railway executive.-Life and career:Born in 1843 in rural Illinois, he moved with his family to Joliet, Illinois when he was eight years old...
, offered free travel passes to several artists who would sketch and paint vistas of the Canadian west. The CPR wanted artistic works that would heighten public interest in transcontinental travel. Bell-Smith’s stylistically conservative paintings were popular in both eastern Canada and Britain, and he frequently returned to the west to work. He was particularly fond of the natural splendour of the area around Lake Louise
Lake Louise (Alberta)
Lake Louise is a lake in Alberta, Canada. The glacial lake is located in Banff National Park, from the hamlet of Lake Louise and the Trans-Canada Highway....
and by the turn of the century he made annual trips to the west.
These experiences led Bell-Smith to advocate a Canadian school of art which drew its uniqueness from the use of the Canadian landscape as its subject matter. Later artists, including Tom Thomson
Tom Thomson
Thomas John Thomson , also known as Tom Thomson, was an influential Canadian artist of the early 20th century. He directly influenced a group of Canadian painters that would come to be known as the Group of Seven, and though he died before they formally formed, he is sometimes incorrectly credited...
, Emily Carr
Emily Carr
Emily Carr was a Canadian artist and writer heavily inspired by the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. One of the first painters in Canada to adopt a post-impressionist painting style, Carr did not receive widespread recognition for her work until later in her life...
, and the Group of Seven
Group of Seven (artists)
The Group of Seven, sometimes known as the Algonquin school, were a group of Canadian landscape painters from 1920-1933, originally consisting of Franklin Carmichael , Lawren Harris , A. Y. Jackson , Franz Johnston , Arthur Lismer , J. E. H. MacDonald , and Frederick Varley...
, contributed to this focus on Canada’s natural environment in art.
Bell-Smith also created many paintings of late Victorian and Edwardian eastern Canada and Britain. One of his most famous and playful paintings is Lights of a City Street, which portrays the intersection of Yonge and King Streets in Toronto in 1894. Bell-Smith depicted himself in the painting as the man buying a newspaper, his son is the man raising his hat, and the policeman is Bill Redford, the constable actually stationed at the corner.
In connection with a series of paintings related to the death of Prime Minister Sir John Thompson in 1894, Bell-Smith managed to negotiate a sitting with Queen Victoria, who normally disliked having her portrait taken by anyone aside from a few select photographers. According to Bell-Smith, he followed the advice of a Canadian senator to approached Lord Clinton and Hafiz Abdul Karim about a sitting with the Queen, but received discouraging replies from both men. Bell-Smith was able to obtain sittings with Princesses Beatrice and Louise, whose husband, the Marquis of Lorne, was a former Governor General of Canada and an advocate of Bell-Smith. The Princesses used their influence to persuade the Queen to sit for Bell-Smith. The cordial sitting lasted for over an hour, during which Queen Victoria permitted Bell-Smith to position her as he wished. Princess Louise, an artist herself, offered Bell-Smith advice. The Queen also spoke to her daughters and other attendants about her grandchildren (mostly in German). At the end of the sitting, the Queen approved Bell-Smith’s work. This anecdotal episode demonstrated Bell-Smith’s influence and popularity in Britain. Indeed, Bell-Smith contemplated moving to Britain in the 1890s, but he decided to divide his time between Canada and Europe.
Bell-Smith continued to paint until his death, although he was less active towards the end of his life.
He was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts
Royal Canadian Academy of Arts
The Royal Canadian Academy of Arts is a Canadian arts-related institution founded in 1880, under the patronage of the Governor General of Canada, Sir John Douglas Sutherland Campbell, the Marquess of Lorne. Canadian landscape painter Homer Watson was a member and president of the Academy...
.
External links
- Frederic Marlett Bell-Smith at The Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian Encyclopedia is a source of information on Canada. It is available online, at no cost. The Canadian Encyclopedia is available in both English and French and includes some 14,000 articles in each language on a wide variety of subjects including history, popular culture, events, people,...
- HBC Corporate Collections: Art http://www.hbc.com/hbcheritage/collections/art/lights/