Celia Frances Bedford (11 February 1904 – 23 February 1959) was a British artist, notable for her portrait and figure paintings plus her work as a lithographer.

Biography

Bedford was born in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

in west London into an artistic family, her father being the illustrator Francis Donkin Bedford. She studied at the Chelsea School of Art during 1931 and 1932. As well as individual portraits, Bedford often depicted groups of people relaxing in cafes and restaurants. She specialised in lithography and was an artist member of the

Senefelder Club The Senefelder Club is an organization formed in London in 1909 to promote the craft of art reproduction by the process of lithography. The club was named in honor of Aloys Senefelder, who in 1796 invented the lithographic process. The process ...

. Bedford had solo exhibitions at the Twenty-One Gallery and the Leicester Galleries in London. She exhibited on a regular basis at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

, the

Royal Society of British Artists The Royal Society of British Artists (RBA) is a British art body established in 1823 as the Society of British Artists, as an alternative to the Royal Academy. History The RBA commenced with twenty-seven members, and took until 1876 to reach fif ...

, the Society of Women Artists. She was also a member of the Women's International Art Club and in 1955 was elected a member of the New English Art Club. Works by Bedford are held by Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, the Atkinson Art Gallery and Library in Southport and

Leamington Spa Art Gallery The Royal Pump Rooms is a cultural centre on the Parade in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England. It was the most famous of several spa baths opened in Leamington between the late-18th and mid-19th centuries. People would travel from throughou ...

. The Victoria & Albert Museum also has examples. In 1960 a memorial exhibition for Bedford was held at Walker's Galleries in London.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bedford, Celia Frances 1904 births 1959 deaths 20th-century British printmakers 20th-century English women artists Alumni of Chelsea College of Arts British etchers English women painters Artists from London People from Kensington Women etchers