Artist Information
Artist
Thomas Bamford (1861-1941)Role
PainterDate made
n.d.Time Period
19th Century, 20th CenturyNotes
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Born in Liverpool, England, Thomas Bamford was a talented amateur Canadian painter active in B.C. and Ontario. He studied at the Liverpool School of Art and later at the Boston Art School, after immigrating there where he worked as a founder. He settled in Victoria in 1882, working as a founder, and later as a surveyor from the 1890s until he retired in 1926. Bamford took up art as a hobby and had a home studio across the street from artist Emily Carr's (1871-1945) house in the James Bay neighbourhood close to downtown. He was a prolific sketcher, and from drawings produced many watercolours and oil paintings, although he rarely sold his work and was reportedly generous in his gift-giving.
His work was closely connected to the English landscape watercolour tradition in subject matter, medium and style. In the 1890s he also did magazine illustration and organized the art exhibition that opened the new Parliament Buildings. He was very involved in the arts community exhibiting at the Vancouver Art Association Annual Exhibitions, the B.C. Society of Fine Arts exhibitions, and also with the Island Arts and Crafts Society for close to 30 years. He was a charter member of the Society, serving two terms as its president and contributing to almost all the annual exhibitions for some 25 years. He also showed his work at the Ottawa Art Gallery, the Ontario Art Gallery, at the Canadian Nation Exhibition, and with the Ontario Society of Artists. He was also a member of the Vancouver Art Association and the Victoria Sketch Club.
Bamford was also one of 118 Canadian artists who, in 1932, demanded reform at the National Gallery of Canada including a government investigation and threatened a contentious boycott. In addition to the Gallery, the controversy involved the Canadian Group of Seven, the Royal Canadian Academy, various key artist societies (incl. the Island Arts and Crafts Society), Government Ministers and many professional artists. See Web Links.
