Leland Bell (September 17, 1922 – September 18, 1991) was an Americanpainter.
Leland Bell was a self-taught painter whose passion for the discipline of painting has inspired and influenced many. He was also a fierce advocate for artists that he admired. In the early years of his career these includedKarl Knaths,Jean Arp, andPiet Mondrian. In these early years he worked as a guard at theMuseum of Non-Objective Art.[1] In the mid-1940s his allegiance toabstract painting receded after he formed a friendship withJean Hélion, and Bell subsequently became a champion of Hélion,Fernand Léger,Balthus,Alberto Giacometti, andAndré Derain.[2][3] Bell was also a jazz aficionado and drummer.[4]
In 1944 he married the painterLouisa Matthíasdóttir (1917–2000), whose figurative style influenced his work.[5] In contrast to Matthíasdóttir, who worked quickly, Bell labored over his paintings, sometimes for years.[5] The couple had a daughter, Temma, in 1945. The family divided their time between New York and Matthíasdóttir's native Iceland.
Bell was active as a painter, teacher, and lecturer. In 1987, he had a retrospective exhibition at thePhillips Collection in Washington, DC. He was diagnosed withleukemia in the 1980s, and died September 18, 1991.[6]
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