J.W. Beatty was born and educated in Toronto, Ontario. He first learned sign painting with his father, followed by working at an engraving firm. He travelled to Paris and studied at the Academie Julian. When he returned to Toronto in 1901, he opened a studio and became an art teacher at the Ontario School of Art and Design. He attended classes at the Mahlstick Club and became a member of the Graphic Arts Club. In 1906-08, he returned to Paris, where he studied again at the Julian Academy as well as the Colarossi Academy, and then he went to study in London. He also travelled to Holland, Belgium, Italy and Spain. In 1912 he began to teach at the Ontario College of Art. He often went on sketching trips with Tom Thomson, J.E.H. MacDonald and A.Y. Jackson. In 1917 he was appointed the official war artist for the Canadian War Memorials. He was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy, the Ontario Society of Artists, and served as president of the Arts and Letters Club.
|
