Elizabeth Forbes (artist)
| Elizabeth Forbes | |
|---|---|
Self-portrait about 1900
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| Born |
Elizabeth Armstrong 29 December 1859 Kingston, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | 16 March 1912 (aged 52) Newlyn, England |
| Nationality | Canadian-English |
| Education | South Kensington Art School |
| Known for | Painter |
| Movement | Newlyn School |
| Spouse(s) | Stanhope Forbes |
Elizabeth Adela Forbes (née Armstrong; 29 December 1859 – 16 March 1912) was a Canadian painter who was primarily active in the UK. She often featured children in her paintings and School Is Out (painted in Newlyn) is one of her most popular works. She was friends with the artists James Abbott McNeill Whistler and Walter Sickert, both of whom influenced her work. Her etchings in particular are said to show the influence of Whistler.
After studying and working in continental Europe, Forbes settled in Newlyn, England where she raised her son and established a school with her husband, Stanhope Forbes. She had her works exhibited in notable shows and won medals for her works. Her paintings are in collections of museums in Canada, United States and England.
Born in Kingston, Ontario, Elizabeth Armstrong was the youngest child of William Armstrong, an employee of the Government of Canada. Born in her father's old age, she was educated privately in Canada and then allowed to further her artistic studies in England with her mother as chaperone. Her father died two months later, after which she and her mother lived with an uncle in Chelsea, London. They lived next door to Dante Gabriel Rossetti, but she never met him.
In 1889 she married Newlyn School painter Stanhope Forbes. Their son, Alec, was born in 1893. In 1904 she and her husband settled at Higher Faugan, a house which they designed and had built for themselves.
Elizabeth Forbes in her Studio, about 1890
Elizabeth Adèla Forbes, Stanhope Alexander Forbes, before 1912
Elizabeth Forbes, The Half Holiday, Alec home from school
In 1909 she pursued cures and restorative periods for cancer in France and London, but died in 1912. In an obituary she was dubbed "the Queen of Newlyn" for her contributions to the art colony. Her husband remarried following her death.
As a young girl, Elizabeth Armstrong, later Forbes, traveled with her mother to England and studied at the South Kensington Art School (now the Royal College of Art). She then returned to Canada, during which time her father died. From 1877 to 1880 she studied at the Art Students League of New York with William Merritt Chase, who recommended that she next study in Munich. Following his advise, Armstrong went to Germany and studied with J. Frank Currier and Frank Duveneck in the early 1880s.
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Wikipedia