The Elizabeth Smily Virtual Gallery of Fine Art

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Biography

Elizabeth emphasizes that good draftsmanship and a mastery of techniques are essential to success in the art field.  " With this background a student is equipped to enter any area of the visual arts field whether it be commercial or fine, abstract  or representational".

ELIZABETH SMILY F.R.S.A., F.C.A.

Elizabeth Smily was born in Yorkshire, England. She began her formal art training at Heatherley's Art School in London, and was later accepted by the Royal Academy Schools, from which she graduated as a 1949 Lord Leverhulme Award winner - an  honour accorded to the best student in painting, sculpture or architecture for the year.  

Elizabeth then opened a studio in Chelsea, which soon became a mecca for international celebrities and artists - amongst them the famous portraitist, Augustus John.  During this period she exhibited at the Royal Academy several times and her works were shown at the Royal Portrait Society, the National Society and the Whitechapel Galleries in London. She also had a successful one person show at the Studio Club in Piccadilly, and was commissioned to paint many interesting personalities, such as Marlene Dietrich, James Stewart, Trevor Howard, Glynis Johns, Odette Churchill the war heroine, and a Nigerian king. 

After moving to Canada in 1952, she worked with Arthur Lismer for a short period and was soon commissioned to paint several portraits, amongst them those of the wife of General Pearkes, then Minister of Defense; Mr. Justice O'Hearn, Attorney General of Nova Scotia, and Mr. Justice St. Jacques of the Quebec Superior Court. Some of her more recent works include Dr. James B. Rhoads, the retired archivist of the United States,  which is now hanging in the National Archives in Washington, D.C., and Dr. Alan  Brown, the retired Headmaster of St. George's School in Vancouver. Elizabeth's work has been shown at the Montreal Museum of Fine Art, and her drawings, figure compositions, animal studies, landscapes and portraits have been exhibited extensively in Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa and Vancouver. Elizabeth has lived in Vancouver since 1969.   Elizabeth is a superb draftsman and portraitist. Moreover, through years of riding, working with horses, and studying animal anatomy, Elizabeth has developed a unique talent for depicting the true likeness of individual horses. Art critics have described her work as "unusually strong" and "masterful". Her work is predicated on a thorough mastery of Classical drawing. She emphasizes that good draftsmanship and a mastery of techniques are essential to success in the art field. 

" With this background a student is equipped to enter any area of the visual arts field whether it be commercial or fine, abstract  or representational".