Scottish engraver (1806?1872)
Robert Charles Bell
(15 September 1806 ? 5 September 1872)
[1]
was a Scottish
engraver
.
Life
[
edit
]
Bell was born at
Edinburgh
and at an early age he was articled to
John Beugo
, the friend of
Robert Burns
, and while in his studio he also attended the classes at the
Trustees' Academy
, then under the direction of
Sir William Allan
. After leaving Beugo he engraved a series of Scottish views and a considerable number of vignette portraits.
Bell died in Edinburgh on 5 September 1872. His son,
Robert Purves Bell
, A.R.S.A., was a Scottish painter of figure subjects.
[2]
Works
[
edit
]
The works which brought Bell into notice were 'The Rush Plaiters,' after Sir
George Harvey
, and the plates which he engraved for the Royal Scottish Association, among which were 'The Widow' and 'Roger and Jenny,' after Sir William Allan; 'The Expected Penny,' after
Alexander Fraser
; 'The Quarrel Scene in The Dowie Dens o' Yarrow,' after
Sir J. Noel Paton
and 'Baillie McWhirter at Breakfast,' after
J. Eckford Lauder
.
[2]
A major plate was 'The Battle of Preston Pans,' after Sir William Allan, upon which he was engaged at intervals for some years, and which he had only just completed at the time of his death. Several of his best plates appeared in
The Art Journal
between the years 1850 and 1872. They included 'The Duet,' after
William Etty
; 'The Philosopher,' after
Henry Wyatt
; 'The Bagpiper,' after Sir
David Wilkie
; and 'The Young Brother,' after
William Mulready
, from the pictures formerly in the
Vernon Gallery
;
[3]
'Teasing the Pet,' after that by
Frans van Mieris the Elder
in the
Royal Collection
; 'Sancho Panza,' after that by
C. R. Leslie
in the
Sheepshanks Collection
; 'Words of Comfort,' after
Thomas Faed
; 'Renewal of the Lease refused,' after
Erskine Nicol
; and 'Within a Mile of Edinbro' Town,' after
John Faed
.
References
[
edit
]
Attribution
[
edit
]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the
public domain
:
Stephen, Leslie
, ed. (1885). "
Bell, Robert Charles
".
Dictionary of National Biography
. Vol. 4. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
|
---|
International
| |
---|
National
| |
---|
Artists
| |
---|