Scott, William Bell (1811–1890)

Scottish painter, illustrator, and poet. He painted historical themes, his major works being scenes of Northumberland history, and he was closely associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, though he regarded himself as a ‘realist’.

Scott was born in Edinburgh. He exhibited at the Royal Scottish Academy from 1834, and the Royal Academy from 1842. In 1847 Rossetti wrote to him and Scott contributed to the Pre-Raphaelite journal, The Germ. He painted murals of Northumbrian history for Wallington Hall, near Newcastle, and for the King's Quair at Penkill Castle, Ayrshire. He wrote Poems of a Painter and published an autobiography in 1892 containing candid reminiscences of the Pre-Raphaelite circle. His brother was the painter David Scott (1806–1849).