Gilbert Spencer (1892-1979)

Painter of landscapes, portraits, figure compositions and mural decorations.

Born 4 August 1892 at Cookham, Berkshire, brother of Sir Stanley Spencer.

Studied at Camberwell School, the R.C.A. (wood carving) 1911–12, and under Brown and Tonks at the Slade School 1913–15 and 1919–20. Served with the R.A.M.C. in Salonika and the Eastern Mediterranean 1915–19. Member of the N.E.A.C. 1919. First one-man exhibition at the Goupil Gallery 1923. Has worked mainly in Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Dorset and the Lake District. Made wall-paintings of the Foundation Legend of Balliol College for Holywell Manor, Oxford, 1934–6. Professor of Painting at the R.C.A. 1932–48. Official War Artist 1940–3. Head of the Department of Painting at Glasgow School of Art 1948–50 and at Camberwell School 1950–7. A.R.A. 1950, R.A. 1960. Author of Stanley Spencer 1961. Retrospective exhibition at Reading 1964.

During the late 1930s, after his move to Tree Cottage, Upper Basildon, Berkshire with his wife Ursula, Gilbert began to re-introduce people into his paintings once more, focusing on small, intimate pictures of figures caught seemingly unaware, such as his Going to Market, and The Coalman.