Théophile Hamel

Théophile Hamel (1817-1870), Canadian painter, best known for his portraits.

He was born in Sainte-Foy, Lower Canada (now Québec), which is near Québec City. In his youth, from 1834 to 1840, Hamel apprenticed with the painter Antoine Plamondon in Québec City. From him Hamel learned classical portrait painting, especially the art of effectively conveying rich textiles in paint. As do Plamondon’s portraits, Hamel’s paintings show the sitter full-face in a tightly composed, close-up view. In a youthful self-portrait (1837?, Québec Seminary Museum, Québec) he placed the figure in a landscape, a first for Canada. In 1843 Hamel traveled to Europe, and while in Italy he studied the paintings of the 16th-century Venetian painter Titian. Upon his return to Canada in 1846, he lived in Québec City, then in Montréal, before settling back in Québec City in 1850.

Hamel quickly gained prominence with his dignified, lifelike portraits of Canada’s politicians, clergy, and upper class. He also painted Canadian historical figures, including explorers Jacques Cartier and Samuel de Champlain. Hamel’s portraits often recalled paintings he had seen abroad, yet he was an innovator for Canada. For example, some of his paintings were life-size canvases. Sometimes he placed subjects in recognizable settings, such as on Dufferin Terrace in Québec City, with its distinctive railing and light fixture. Hamel often included pets in portraits of children, a device that highlighted the young subject’s natural affection and contact with nature.

In 1853, a year after he completed a portrait of Lord Elgin, the governor-general of Canada, Hamel was made the government’s official painter. In this post, he was commissioned to paint many Canadian politicians, and he traveled throughout Canada to paint his subjects. Hamel is said to have painted very quickly, and more than 2,000 portraits by him still exist. Hamel taught many other artists, such as Napoléon Bourassa, who had been his studio assistant. He helped the profession of artist gain a firm footing in Canada.