George Frederick Henry Bell (1 December 1878 – 22 October 1966) was an Australian painter and teacher, critic, portraitist, violinist and war artist who contributed significantly to the advancement of the local Modern movement from the 1920s to the 1930s.

Early life and education

He was born in

Kew Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is a ...

, Victoria, the son and fourth child of Clara (née Bowler) and George Bell, public servant, and educated at

Kew High School Kew High School is a co-educational school in suburban Melbourne for students in years 7–12. The school has an enrolment of approximately 1146 students from the suburbs of Kew, Balwyn North, Hawthorn, Ivanhoe, Kew East and Richmond. School g ...

. He studied at the National Gallery of Victoria Art School from 1896 to 1903 under

Frederick McCubbin Frederick McCubbin (25 February 1855 – 20 December 1917) was an Australian artist, art teacher and prominent member of the Heidelberg School art movement, also known as Australian impressionism. Born and raised in Melbourne, Victoria, McCubb ...

and painting master Bernard Hall as well as taking private instruction from George Coates 1895-6.

Europe

Bell's father financed his studies so he could afford to travel, and on 19 April 1904 he sailed for England, then Paris where studied with

Jean Paul Laurens Jean-Paul Laurens (; 28 March 1838 – 23 March 1921) was a French painter and sculptor, and one of the last major exponents of the French Academic style. Biography Laurens was born in Fourquevaux and was a pupil of Léon Cogniet and Alexa ...

at Julian's atelier, then at the academies of the Spaniard Castelucha and Colarossi. In 1906 he travelled to Italy to study the Old Masters, particularly Titian and Tintoretto, before visiting the Impressionist artists’ colonies at

Étaples Étaples or Étaples-sur-Mer (; vls, Stapel, lang; pcd, Étape) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. It is a fishing and leisure port on the Canche river. History Étaples takes its name from having been a medieval ...

, and St Ives in 1907. That year he became a founder of the Modern Society of Portrait Painters in London where he later exhibited in 1915. Importantly, in 1908 he was accepted into the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

and joined the

Chelsea Arts Club The Chelsea Arts Club is a private members' club at 143 Old Church Street in Chelsea, London with a membership of over 3,800, including artists, sculptors, architects, writers, designers, actors, musicians, photographers, and filmmakers. The club ...

, mixing with Australian expatriates

Will Ashton Sir John William Ashton, OBE, ROI (20 September 1881 – 1 September 1963) was a prolific Australian Impressionist artist and director of the National Art Gallery of New South Wales from 1937 to 1943. Early life Ashton was born in Clifton, ...

, Fred Leist, George Coates,

Dora Meeson Dora Meeson (1869–1955) was an Australian artist and an elected member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters in London, England. She was a member of the British Artists' Suffrage League. She was married to fellow artist George James Coates on ...

Will Dyson William Henry Dyson (3 September 1880 – 21 January 1938) was an Australian illustrator and political cartoonist. In 1931 he was regarded as "one of the world's foremost black and white artists", and in 1980, "Australia's greatest cartoonist" ...

and his wife

Ruby Lindsay Ruby Lindsay (20 March 1885 – 12 March 1919) was an Australian illustrator and painter, sister of Norman Lindsay and Percy Lindsay. Biography Lindsay was born in Creswick, Victoria, the seventh child and second daughter of Robert and Jane ...

, and British artists George Lambert and

Philip Connard Philip Connard, (24 March 1875 – 8 December 1958) was a British painter known particularly for his paintings of decorative landscapes. Connard rose from humble origins to become an eminent artist in oils and watercolours whose commissions bro ...

War years

Australian Official War Artists by Coates

Bell remained in England at the outset of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and being declared medically unfit, he taught at Highfield School in

Liphook Liphook is a large village in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 4.1 miles (6.6 km) west of Haslemere, bypassed by the A3 road, and lies on the Hampshire/West Sussex/Surrey borders. It is in the civil parish of Brams ...

, and during 1917 worked in a munitions factory. From October 1918 to the end of 1919 he was an official war artist to the 4th Division of the Australian Imperial Force on the Western Front though combat had ceased when he arrived, so he documented scenes of the devastation, and the daily lives of soldiers, of whom he made twelve portraits. Bell's major war painting concerning the Battle of Hamel, ''Dawn at Hamel 4 July 1918'', was completed in 1920, after his return to Australia in poor health in December 1919, and the work now hangs in the

Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in wars involving the Commonwealth of Australia and some conflicts involving pe ...

. The

Ballarat Fine Art Gallery The Art Gallery of Ballarat is the oldest and largest regional art gallery in Australia. Established in 1884 as the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery by the citizens of Ballarat, both the building and part of its collection is listed on the Victorian H ...

collection includes his work entitled ''The Conversation''. One of his early formal paintings, ''The Conversation'' was painted while he was overseas and was first exhibited at the Modern Society of Portrait Painters in 1911.

Postwar

Bell married English actress Edith Lucy Antoinette Hobbs, whom he had met in England in 1915. They had a house and studio built for them by Bell's cousin

Marcus Barlow Marcus Barlow (1890–1954) was a prominent Australian architect in the interwar period, who designed a number of notable central city buildings in his home-town of Melbourne. He is best known for the 1932 Manchester Unity Building, whose Go ...

; 9 Selbourne Road Toorak remained his lifelong home and there the couple entertained often and artists including Will Dyson and Eric Thake visited to sketch. The couple's only child Antoinette was born in December 1922. Bell had also studied violin with

Victor The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

and Alberto Zelman, joined the Hawthorn Orchestra, and during the 1920s played the viola in the University Conservatorium Orchestra and later the

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) is an Australian orchestra based in Melbourne. The MSO is resident at Hamer Hall. The MSO has its own choir, the MSO Chorus, following integration with the Melbourne Chorale in 2008. The MSO relies on f ...

. He involved himself eagerly in the community of artists, being elected to the council of the Victorian Artists’ Society, was a founder of the

Twenty Melbourne Painters Twenty Melbourne Painters Society is an Australian arts organisation that was established in 1918. The group split from the Victorian Artists Society to follow the Australian Tonalist Max Meldrum. Membership is restricted to 20 and is upon invitat ...

and in 1922 joined the Australian Art Association, serving as president between 1924 and 1926. He wrote art reviews for

The Sun News-Pictorial ''The Sun News-Pictorial'' (known as ''The Sun'') was a morning daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, from 1922 until its merger in 1990 with ''The Herald (Melbourne), The H ...

from 1923 to 1950. In 1925 he replaced the National Gallery School drawing master

William McInnes Daryl William Mathew Gabriel McInnes (born 10 September 1963) is an Australian film and television actor and writer. He portrayed the role of Matt Tivolli in '' The Time of Our Lives''. He is best known for his roles as Senior Constable Nick S ...

while he was overseas. He continued in a

Tonalist Tonalist (foaled February 11, 2011) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2014 Belmont Stakes, beating the favored California Chrome, who was attempting to win the Triple Crown. Tonalist won the Peter Pan Stakes in ...

style though was increasingly attracted to Modernism by the 1930s.

Teaching

George Bell gave classes for students including

Eric Thake Eric Prentice Anchor Thake (8 June 1904 – 3 November 1982) was an Australian artist, designer, painter, printmaker and war artist. His 1972 Christmas card ''An Opera House in Every Home,'' a humorous take on Jørn Utzon's Sydney Opera House, W ...

, Clive Stephen, Sybil Craig and Madge Freeman at his house in Selborne Rd, Toorak from 1922. Ten years later, as well as still giving some private lessons at his home in Toorak, he and

Arnold Shore Arnold Joseph Victor Shore (5 May 1897, Windsor, – 22 May 1963, Melbourne) was an Australian painter, teacher and critic. Biography Shore was the youngest of seven children of John Shore, a coachsmith, and his wife Harriett Sarah, née McDon ...

opened the Bell-Shore School at 443

Bourke Street, Melbourne Bourke Street is one of the main streets in the Melbourne central business district and a core feature of the Hoddle Grid. It was traditionally the entertainment hub of inner-city Melbourne, and is now also a popular tourist destination and t ...

, which became a centre of modern art in Melbourne. Their students over the years included

Russell Drysdale Sir George Russell Drysdale (7 February 1912 – 29 June 1981), also known as Tass Drysdale, was an Australian artist. He won the prestigious Wynne Prize for ''Sofala'' in 1947, and represented Australia at the Venice Biennale in 1954. He was i ...

Sali Herman Sali Herman (12 February 1898 – 3 April 1993) was a Swiss-born Australian artist, one of Australia's Official War Artists for the Second World War. Life and career Herman arrived in Melbourne in 1937 and enlisted in the Australian Army in ...

, Bill Salmon,

Peter Purves Smith Peter Purves Smith (26 March 191223 July 1949), born Charles Roderick Purves Smith, was an Australian painter. Born in Melbourne, Purves Smith studied at the Grosvenor School of Modern Art in London and under progressive art teacher George Bell ...

, Yvonne Atkinson, Geoff Jones and

Alan Sumner Alan Robert Sumner, MBE (10 February 1911, Melbourne – 20 October 1994, Melbourne) was an Australian artist; a painter, printmaker, teacher and stained glass designer. Education Alan Sumner studied at Melbourne's National Gallery Art School ...

. In his teaching Bell adapted from the tradition of Raphael, whose art teaching elevated life drawing and the study of composition, by incorporating contemporary ideas of the 1820s English theorists

Roger Fry Roger Eliot Fry (14 December 1866 – 9 September 1934) was an English painter and critic, and a member of the Bloomsbury Group. Establishing his reputation as a scholar of the Old Masters, he became an advocate of more recent developme ...

and

Clive Bell Arthur Clive Heward Bell (16 September 1881 – 17 September 1964) was an English art critic, associated with formalism and the Bloomsbury Group. He developed the art theory known as significant form. Biography Origins Bell was born in East ...

, the contemporary French artists André Lhote and

Amédée Ozenfant Amédée Ozenfant (15 April 1886 – 4 May 1966) was a French cubist painter and writer. Together with Charles-Edouard Jeanneret (later known as Le Corbusier) he founded the Purist movement. Education Ozenfant was born into a bourgeois f ...

and, after he undertook an extended study trip to England in 1934-5, particularly the Ideas of his friend

Iain MacNab Iain Macnab of Barachastlain (21 October 1890 – 24 December 1967) was a Scottish wood-engraver and painter. As a prominent teacher he was influential in the development of the British school of wood-engraving. His pictures are noted for cl ...

, a minor British modernist, with whom he travelled to Spain with in 1935. He visited the

Tate galleries Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

and the

New English Art Club The New English Art Club (NEAC) was founded in London in 1885 as an alternative venue to the Royal Academy. It continues to hold an annual exhibition of paintings and drawings at the Mall Galleries in London, exhibiting works by both members and a ...

. When Bell returned from Europe, Shore departed their partnership in 1936. Having assimilated Post-Impressionism, particularly the spatial experiments of Cezanne, and new approaches to painting in England he innovated approaches in his own work to form, spatial construction and modelling through conscientious drawing. Bell continued teaching at the school until 1939 when it was relocated once again to his house. Students in this later period included Ian Armstrong,

Barbara Brash Barbara Nancy Brash (3 November 1925 – 25 February 1998) was a twentieth-century post-war Australian artist known for her painting and innovative printmaking. In an extensive career she contributed to the Melbourne Modernist art scene, beside o ...

, Rod Clarke, Jack Courier, Justin Gill,

Leonard French Leonard William French OBE (8 October 1928 – 10 January 2017) was an Australian artist, known principally for major stained glass works. French was born in Brunswick, Victoria to a family of Cornish origin. His stained glass creation ...

Mary Macqueen Mary McCartney Macqueen (29 January 1912 – 15 September 1994) was an Australian artist who was known for her drawing, printmaking and mixed media works on paper. Her artistic style was expressive, gestural and experimental. Life, training ...

, Anne Montgomery, Guelda Pyke, Harry Rosengrave, Rosemary Ryan, David Strachan and Fred Williams. Adrian Lawlor, Vic O'Connor, Albert Tucker,

Sam Atyeo Samuel Laurence Atyeo (6 January 1910 – 26 May 1990) was an Australian painter, designer and diplomat. Atyeo was active in Melbourne's modernist movement in the 1930s and was associated with the Heide circle. He later had a diplomatic career ...

William Frater William Frater (1890–1974) was a Scottish-born Australian stained-glass designer and modernist painter who challenged conservative tastes in Australian art. Early life and education Scotland William Frater was born on 31 January 1890 a ...

, Isabel Tweddle,

Mary Cecil Allen Mary Cecil Allen (2 September 18937 April 1962) was an Australian artist, writer and lecturer. She lived most of her adult life in America, where she was known as Cecil Allen. Allen initially painted landscapes and portraits in her early career ...

Moya Dyring Moya Dyring (10 February 1909 – 4 January 1967) was an Australian artist. She was one of the first women artists to embrace Modernism and exhibit cubist paintings in Melbourne. For several years she was a member of the modern art community ...

Danila Vassilieff Danila Vassilieff (22 March 1958) was a Russian-born Australian painter and sculptor. He has been called the "father of Australian modernism". Life Danila Ivanovich Vassilieff (Данила Иванович Васильев) was born in 1897 ...

Lina Bryans Lina Bryans (26 September 1909 – 30 September 2000), was an Australian modernist painter. Life Lina Bryans was born in Hamburg, Germany, on 26 August 1909, second daughter of wealthy prosperous Michaelis-Hallenstein family of industria ...

and Basil Burdett frequented the school as associates or casual students. Bell taught his students that creativity and ideas can only be articulated coherently through technique, which might be acquired only through effort and perseverance. His teaching over forty years was influential and it is that for which he is best remembered.

Modern art controversy

In protest at the government sponsored conservatism of Australian art, on 13 July 1932, Bell established the

Contemporary Art Society The Contemporary Art Society (CAS) is an independent charity that champions the collecting of outstanding contemporary art and craft for UK museum collections. Since its founding in 1910 the organisation has donated over 10,000 works to museums ...

as founding president 1938–1940. In 1937, the federal Attorney General,

Robert Menzies The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

, established the

Australian Academy of Art The Australian Academy of Art was a conservative Australian government-authorised art organisation which operated for ten years between 1937 and 1946 and staged annual exhibitions. Its demise resulted from opposition by Modernist artists, especiall ...

, an Australian equivalent to the

. Bell was the leading opponent of the plan and a spokesman for "modern art", pursued a prolonged public argument with Menzies and was instrumental in it not obtaining a

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, bu ...

. That year Bell brought an exhibition of fifty-two works of modern art by artists outside Australia, including paintings by

van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, inclu ...

and also a

Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

, to the National Gallery of Victoria between October and November. The Contemporary Art Society's first exhibition was also at the National Gallery of Victoria, in June 1939, and included work from all states, but after internal disagreements Bell, with 38 members, seceded in 1940. John Reed revived the Society in 1954, and in 1956 established the Gallery of Contemporary Art, which became the Museum of Modern Art Australia in 1958. In 1941 Bell organised another group, the Melbourne Contemporary Artists, and then in 1949 he created the George Bell group, both successful because of his influence in Australian art and respect amongst its community. Its members were;

, Yvonne Atkinson, Geoff Jones, Jack Courier, Justin Gill,

, Ian Armstrong, Fred Williams, Harry Rosengrave, Len French,

Constance Stokes Constance Stokes (née Parkin, 22 February 1906 – 14 July 1991) was an Australian modernist painter who worked in Victoria. She trained at the National Gallery of Victoria Art School until 1929, winning a scholarship to continue her study a ...

Exhibitions

Bell established his reputation in England in a series of exhibitions before the First World War. The

Allied Artists Association The Allied Artists Association (AAA) was an art exhibiting society based in London in the early 20th century. History The Allied Artists Association was founded by Frank Rutter, art critic of ''The Sunday Times'' newspaper, in 1908. Its purpos ...

* 1908:

Walker Art Gallery The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group. History of the Gallery The Walker Art Gallery's collection ...

, Liverpool * 1909: Allied Artists Association * 1911: Modern Society of Portrait Painters * 1911: The Salon * 1913:

, Liverpool * 1913: The Salon * 1913: The Royal Institute Of Portrait Painters * 1914:

Returning to Australia Bell initiated and participated in the exhibitions of the George Bell Group and of the Melbourne Contemporary Art Society, and of his work in a March 1956 showing of the latter, ''The Age'' art critic remarked "George Bell is undoubtedly the most brilliant draftsman of the group. His two drawings, executed with complete control, are monumental in form." * 1931, 27 April – 10 May: Annual Autumn exhibition. Victorian Artists' Society Gallery, Melbourne1935, from 1 November: ''Exhibition of contemporary art''. Geelong Grammar Art Gallery, Geelong Grammar, Geelong * 1946, from 4 June: Contemporary drawings. Myer Gallery, Melbourne * 1950, 23 May – 2 June: ''Tenth anniversary 1940 – 1950''. Tye's Art Gallery, Rear Tyre's Furniture store, Bourke St., Melbourne * 1953, 12–23 December: Herald outdoor art show. Treasury Gardens, Melbourne * 1978, 13 April – 5 May: ''A Survey of Australian Relief Prints 1900 – 1950''. Deutscher Galleries 1092 High Street, Armidale, MelbournePosthumous exhibitions include Bell in surveys of Australian art. In particular * 1979: ''George Bell retrospective exhibition''. University Of Melbourne Art Gallery * 1979, 10 – 25 May: ''Early works and others selected from the Harry Rosengrave Collection''. Hawthorn City Art Gallery, 584 Glenferrie Rd., Hawthorn * 1981: Melbourne woodcuts and linocuts of the 1920's and 1930s. McClelland Gallery, Boundary Rd., Langwarrin; UQ Art Gallery, Level 5, Forgan Smith Tower, University of Queensland, St Lucia; Newcastle Region Art Gallery, Laman Street, Newcastle; Victorian College Of The Arts Gallery, 234 St Kilda Rd., Melbourne; Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, 40 Lydiard St., Ballarat, Victoria, Australia * 1983, 8 – 24 June: ''Images of Women Prints and Drawings of the Twentieth Century''. University Of Melbourne Art Gallery. * 1986: ''Frances Derham MBE: a retrospective exhibition covering the period 1910 to 1985'' including works George Bell, Danila Vassilieff, Geoff Jones, Ethel Spowers, Ludwig Hirschfeld-Mack. Jim Alexander Gallery, 13 Elmo Road, East Malvern * 1988, 13 August – 10 September: ''Fifty Years of Australian Printmaking Sydney Long to Eric Thake''. Josef Lebovic Gallery, 34 Paddington Street, Paddington, Sydney * 1991, 17–28 April: ''The George Bell Group exhibition. A tribute to George Bell''. Eastgate Gallery, 729 High St., Armadale, Victoria

Collections

* Australian War Memorial * National Gallery of Australia * Art Gallery of New South Wales * Art Gallery of Western Australia * Queensland Art Gallery * Newcastle Region Art Gallery * Potter Museum of Art * Ballarat Art Gallery * Castlemaine Art Museum

Legacy

George Bell and his circle were recognised in a major survey of Classical Modernism at the National Gallery of Victoria in 1992 organised by Felicity Moore. Works of fellow modernists, friends or those whom he admired, including Arnold Shore, Lina Bryans, Ian Fairweather and Roger Kemp were shown alongside those of his students;

, Ian Armstrong,

; as well as the later work of his students

, Bill Salmon, David Strachan, Fred Williams, Dorothy Braund, Michael Shannon and others. Bell was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) in 1966.It's an Honour
Retrieved 4 April 2018 He died on 22 October at his home at Toorak in the same year, survived by his wife and daughter.

Publications

* Williams, Fred. (1979)
"Bell, George Frederick Henry (1878–1966),"
''Australian Dictionary of Biography,'' Vol. 7. Carlton, Victoria: Melbourne University Press.

References

External links

Ballarat Fine art Gallery – The Conversation 1910.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, George 1878 births 1966 deaths Australian war artists 20th-century Australian painters 20th-century Australian male artists Archibald Prize finalists Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire Australian male painters Modernism People from Kew, Victoria Artists from Melbourne