William Blair Bruce
| William Blair Bruce | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
October 8, 1859 Hamilton, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | November 17, 1906 (aged 47) , Sweden |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Known for | Brucebo |
| Notable work | The Phantom Hunter |
| Style | Impressionism |
| Spouse(s) | Carolina Benedicks-Bruce |
| Website | brucebostiftelsen |
William Blair Bruce (8 October 1859 – 17 November 1906) was a Canadian painter. He studied in France and became one of Canada's first impressionist painters. He lived most of his life in France and on the island of Gotland, Sweden, where he and his Swedish wife Carolina Benedicks-Bruce created the artists estate Brucebo, which was later established as a nature reserve.
William Blair Bruce was born on 8 October 1859, in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, where he grew up in Corktown and on the Mountain. A plaque in Bruce Park, Hamilton marks the site of his childhood home. He was the son of William Bruce, born 1833 in Scotland, who emigrated to Hamilton with his wife Janet Blair in 1837. Initially Bruce studied law at Hamilton Collegiate Institute, but had his mind set on becoming an architect, and studied for a while at the Mechanics Institute in Hamilton, in 1877. He worked for an architectural firm for the ensuing two years. Members of his family were both musically and artistically inclined and noticed Bruce's talent at an early age. In 1881, they sent him to Paris to study, a journey that extended over the years. He would only return to Canada on two short occasions.
In Paris his classical education at Académie Julian included genre scenes and many other subjects. Like many other artists of the time he wanted to experience the Parisian art scene and join in the competition to exhibit at the annual Salon in Paris. He also traveled to the artist colony in Barbizon where he rented a cottage in 1882, and Grez-sur-Loing where a new generation of Swedish artists, such as Carl Larsson, his wife Karin Bergöö, Bruno Liljefors and August Strindberg had formed a colony. He became acquainted with Impressionism and En plein air or "outdoors painting", a style he came to prefer working with. He also became one of Canada's first impressionist painters. Bruce exhibited at the Salon in 1882. His works received positive reviews but the following year his self confidence and finances deteriorated. His parents were not entirely enthusistic about his new painting style but he ignored them and began to create very large paintings. His Temps Passé was exhibited at the 1884 Salon although despite this success he remained in financial difficulties. Bruce subsequently suffered a nervous breakdown and hastily returned to Canada for the first time. To compound his problems, the steamship Brooklyn, carrying about 200 of his works, sank outside Anticosti Island in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence on 8 November 1885.
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