Lorne Kidd Smith (1880 – c. 1966) was a Canadian

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

best known for his scenes from the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. He lived and worked in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

for most of his life. Smith was born in

Niagara Falls, Ontario Niagara Falls is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is on the western bank of the Niagara River in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario, with a population of 88,071 at the 2016 census. It is part of the St. Catharines - Niagara Census M ...

in 1880. He studied art in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

in his early 20s and worked for the Forbes Lithographing Company. He relocated to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

in 1909, and worked for Stone Limited and Brigdens Limited, as a staff artist for R.G. McLean and Grip Limited, for the art department at

General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...

(1917), and as an artist for Photo Engravers Limited (1937). He was a member of the

Canadian Society of Graphic Art The Canadian Society of Graphic Art (CSGA), originally called the Graphic Arts Club, was a non-profit organization of Canadian graphic artists. It was founded in 1904, and formally chartered in 1933. At one time it was one of the larger organizatio ...

. He designed a poster for the

First World War 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 ...

-era

Victory Loan The term victory (from Latin ''victoria'') originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes a ...

campaign, for which he won a prize. He became an artist for Schaeffer-Ross, eventually becoming vice-president before his death. Smith's best-known paintings are "The Meeting of Brock and Tecumseh" and "Laura Secord Warning Colonel Fitzgibbon, June 1813", both of which are now in the collection of

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; french: Bibliothèque et Archives Canada) is the federal institution, tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is th ...

. Both are oil paintings depicting scenes of the Canadian/British forces in the War of 1812. They were likely commissioned by Dr. Arthur Doughty, the Dominion archivist, in the early 20th century. "Laura Secord Warning Colonel Fitzgibbon, June 1813" depicts the legend of

Laura Secord Laura Secord ( Ingersoll; 13 September 1775 – 17 October 1868) was a Canadian heroine of the War of 1812. She is known for having walked out of American-occupied territory in 1813 to warn British forces of an impending American atta ...

warning the British army of impending American attack; it was probably painted around 1920. "The Meeting of Brock and Tecumseh" reflected the alliance between British forces under General

Isaac Brock Major-General Sir Isaac Brock KB (6 October 1769 – 13 October 1812) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Guernsey. Brock was assigned to Lower Canada in 1802. Despite facing desertions and near-mutinies, he c ...

and

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

groups under

Tecumseh Tecumseh ( ; October 5, 1813) was a Shawnee chief and warrior who promoted resistance to the expansion of the United States onto Native American lands. A persuasive orator, Tecumseh traveled widely, forming a Native American confederacy and ...

; it was painted at some point prior to 1931.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Lorne Kidd 1880 births 1960s deaths 20th-century Canadian painters Canadian male painters Artists from Ontario 20th-century Canadian male artists