William Bell (artist)

William Bell
Born	1735 Newcastle Upon Tyne, England
Died	1806 Newcastle Upon Tyne, England
Nationality	English
Education	Royal Academy of Art
Occupation	Portrait Artist
Known for	Art and Portrait Painting
Children	Elizabeth Bell (b. 1789)

William Bell, born about 1734/5, was an English portrait painter originally from Newcastle upon Tyne.^[1] In around 1768 he moved to London, to be a student in the Royal Academy of Arts. While there, in the year of 1771, he received a gold medal for his painting of Venus entreating Vulcan to forge arms for her son Æneas.^[2] William Bell's best known works were the portraits painted for the family of Delaval, of Seaton Delaval Hall.^[3] These paintings earned Bell the patronage of Lord Delaval, and in 1775 he exhibited two views of Delaval Hall. A portrait he painted of Robert Harrison, 1715-1802, is displayed in the National Portrait Gallery, London.^[4] William Bell died in or around 1806.^[1]

Gallery

Portrait of Lord John Hussey Delaval, painted by William Bell in 1774	Portrait of Sophia Anne Delaval, painted by William Bell in 1770	Portrait of John Delaval (1756–1775) as an archer, painted by William Bell in 1770
Portrait of sisters Frances and Sarah Delaval, painted by William Bell in 1771	| Portrait of Susanna Robinson, Lady Delaval, painted by William Bell in 1770	Portrait of Elizabeth Delaval playing a lyre in a landscape setting, by William Bell in 1774
Painting of the North Face of Seaton Delaval Hall, by WIlliam Bell in 1775	Painting of the South Front of Seaton Delaval Hall, by William Bell in 1775	Portrait of mathematician and biologist Robert Harrison, painted by William Bell in 1791

References

1. Nisbet, A. (2004). "Bell, William (1734/5–1806?)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/2032. Retrieved 2015-10-02. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
2. Dictionary of National Biography, Volumes 1-20, 22
3. "William Bell (1740-1804)". Your Paintings. BBC. Retrieved 2013-11-20.
4. "National Portrait Gallery - Person - William Bell". London: National Portrait Gallery. Retrieved 2013-11-20.