William Bell Scott
William Bell Scott was a Scottish poet and artist, born on September 12, 1811, in Edinburgh. He was the seventh child of Robert and Ross Bell Scott and grew up under the shadow of his father while admiring his older brother, David. Scott discovered his artistic talents during his high school years, but his father initially directed him towards engraving, which provided a foundation for his writing career. His first poem was published in 1831, and he began to gain recognition for both his poetry and paintings. After moving to London in 1837, he exhibited his work and continued to publish, marrying Letitia Margery Norquoy in 1838.
Scott's life was marked by significant friendships, including a particularly close bond with Dante Gabriel Rossetti, which influenced his artistic style. In the 1840s, he became headmaster of government schools of design in Newcastle and later developed a deep relationship with Alice Boyd, which he described as "the perfect friendship." Despite marital challenges, he continued to create art and poetry until his death on November 22, 1890. Throughout his life, Scott's work reflected his personal experiences and the restrictions imposed during his upbringing.
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Subject Terms
William Bell Scott
Fine Artist
- Born: September 12, 1811
- Birthplace: Edinburgh, Scotland
- Died: November 22, 1890
- Place of death: Penkill Castle, Perthshire, Scotland
Biography
Poet and artist William Bell Scott was born on September 12, 1811, in Edinburgh, Scotland, the seventh child born to Robert and Ross Bell Scott. Throughout his life, Scott would fear his father and revere his older brother David. As a teen Scott found his calling when his high school education uncovered his gifts for art and poetry. However, his artistic ambitions were thwarted when his father made him learn engraving.
While working as an engraver, Scott was able to find support for his writing. His mentors, Professor John Wilson and the author Sir Walter Scott, encouraged him to publish his work, and in 1831 his first poem appeared in Tait’s Edinburgh Magazine. That year, he also had two pieces exhibited at the Trustees Academy, where he was studying art. By 1834, Scott would have his first landscape painting on exhibit at the Royal Scottish Academy and would become the only nonuniversity member to be admitted to St. Luke’s Club. At this time, Scott anonymously contributed his prose and poetry to the Edinburgh University Souvenir. Scott also met the man who would become his best friend, William A. C. Shand, a theology student. The two met at the club, where they discovered similar interests and vowed soon after to be together forever.
Despite this vow, Scott left Shand and went to St. Petersburg, Russia, where he briefly worked as a tutor. He resumed his friendship with Shand, but the two were forced to split up after Shand got into trouble with the law. The loss of his friend had a significant impact on Scott, resulting in his decision to leave Scotland in the spring of 1837 and seek his fortune in London. He was young and shy and had little money and little knowledge of the world outside of his father’s home, but Scott developed friendships and sought to make his living as an artist.
While in London, Scott exhibited his paintings at art galleries while continuing to publish his poems. On October 31, 1838, he married Letitia Margery Norquoy, a seafarer’s daughter. In 1843, he took a job as headmaster at the government schools of design in Newcastle. In 1847, Scott received a letter from an enthusiastic reader who explained how he had seen an advertisement for one of Scott’s books, had rushed out to buy it, and “fell upon [it] like a vulture.” The letter was signed Gabriel Chas. Rossetti, another name for the Pre-Raphaelite painter and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Scott became friends with Rossetti, whose style of painting would influence the style of Scott’s writing.
By 1859, Scott was frustrated with his marriage. He entered into a relationship with Alice Boyd and soon found himself inextricably bound to her in friendship; his connection to her was, as he defined it, “the perfect friendship, the ambition of my life,” one which was so satisfying that it all but replaced his relationship with his wife. However, he remained married to Letitia, and in 1864 the couple and Alice moved into a house in Kensington Park Gardens in London. During the remaining years of his life, Scott painted, served (albeit reluctantly) as a South Kensington examiner, wrote, and reunited with Rossetti. He would complete two more volumes of verse, composing poems that were simple in form and recalled his restrictive childhood. After an attack of angina pectoris, Scott died on November 22, 1890.