Art History talk

A Canadian Artist in Cornwall - Elizabeth Adela Forbes (1859 - 1912) Talk given by Catherine Wallace.

From a young age Elizabeth Armstrong who was born in Ontario, Canada showed a talent for art – her extensive studies in London, Munich, and New York, combined with working trips to Zandvoort and Brittany helped her become an established exhibiting artist.

Only then did she encounter Stanhope Forbes in Newlyn and after becoming engaged in 1886 her personal and artistic life was intertwined with his. Her early etchings showed a skill for drawing. She would use this skill in her pastels, watercolours and gouache works, combining these materials to make unique works on paper. But her ambition lead her to paint large oils, usually on the subject of either children, folklore, poetry or Shakespeare and made her the rival of many of her male contemporaries and surpass them including her husband.

The birth of her and Stanhope’s son Alex in 1893 didn’t seem to slow Elizabeth down and she expanded her repertoire by writing and illustrating her own book. Illness and ultimately death from cancer was the only thing to stop this immensely talented and versatile artist.