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Vanessa Bell

(1879-1961), Painter; sister of Virginia Woolf

Vanessa Bell (née Stephen)

Sitter in 21 portraits
Artist associated with 14 portraits
The eldest daughter of the literary historian and critic, Leslie Stephen, and his wife, Julia. In 1904, following her widowed father's death, she moved to Bloomsbury with her sister Virginia (later Woolf) and brothers, Thoby and Adrian. Their Thursday evening 'At Homes' marked the beginning of the Bloomsbury Group of artists and writers. In 1907 she married the art critic Clive Bell. This, and her association with Roger Fry led her to embrace a more modern style of painting. She exhibited with the New English Art Club in 1909. Bell formed a lasting relationship with Duncan Grant, her co-director of the Omega Workshop between 1913 and 1919. She was a pivotal player in the new artistic styles emerging at the beginning of the twentieth century, particularly in her radical use of abstraction, colour and form.

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Vanessa Bell, by Duncan Grant - NPG 5541

Vanessa Bell

by Duncan Grant
oil on canvas, 1917
NPG 5541

Vanessa Bell, by Duncan Grant - NPG 4331

Vanessa Bell

by Duncan Grant
oil on canvas, circa 1918
On display in Room 24 on Floor 2 at the National Portrait Gallery
NPG 4331

Vanessa Bell, by Marcel Gimond - NPG 4349

Vanessa Bell

by Marcel Gimond
lead cast of bust, 1964, based on a work of circa 1922-1926
NPG 4349

The Memoir Club, by Vanessa Bell - NPG 6718

The Memoir Club

by Vanessa Bell
oil on canvas, circa 1943
NPG 6718

'Work in Progress',  - NPG 7145

'Work in Progress'

acrylic on paper collaged on panels, 2021-2022
On display in Room 33 on Floor 0 at the National Portrait Gallery
NPG 7145

Julian Bell; Vanessa Bell, by Unknown photographer - NPG x136462

Julian Bell; Vanessa Bell

by Unknown photographer
vintage snapshot print, 1910
NPG x136462

Vanessa Bell, by Ray Strachey - NPG x88543

Vanessa Bell

by Ray Strachey
film negative, August 1914
NPG x88543

Vanessa Bell, by Ray Strachey - NPG Ax160968

Vanessa Bell

by Ray Strachey
gelatin silver print, August 1914
NPG Ax160968

Lady Ottoline Morrell with friends, possibly by Philip Edward Morrell - NPG Ax141303

Lady Ottoline Morrell with friends

possibly by Philip Edward Morrell
vintage snapshot print, 1922
NPG Ax141303

Lady Ottoline Morrell with friends, possibly by Philip Edward Morrell - NPG Ax141306

Lady Ottoline Morrell with friends

possibly by Philip Edward Morrell
vintage snapshot print, 1922
NPG Ax141306

Vanessa Bell, by Helen Morris (née Souter) - NPG x136466

Vanessa Bell

by Helen Morris (née Souter)
postcard print, June 1931
NPG x136466

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