About Roberta
A painter and designer since the 1940s, Roberta Bell has lived ‘A Life of Art’. Her activities have ranged from teaching art to mural painting and managing commercial galleries – however, her abiding involvement has been with painting. Roberta has an energy and talent that is both inspiring and infectious. It is her love of art, and her enthusiasm that has seen her still painting into her 90’s.
Artist
Roberta is an artist in all senses of the word. From her paintings, her design work, her love for architecture, to the scenes she created as a gallerist; creativity oozes from every pore of Roberta. Known best for her paintings, Roberta is also an accomplished designer, back when “graphic design” was term not used, and design in general was not considered artwork..
In 1994 Roberta’s work as an artist was recognised when she was invited to prepare a retrospective exhibition of her work (1948-1994) to mark the opening of the new Southern Highlands Regional Gallery at Moss Vale.
Gallerist
Although a prolific and successful artist, Roberta is also a highly respected gallerist, being involved with the opening of Regional Galleries in Woolongong, and Wingecarribee Shire, and her own hugely successful galleries in Berrima. Roberta used these galleries as breeding ground for emerging artists, a way to connect with her community and above all a successful venture to sell artwork for Australian and International artists. In fact her two galleries in Berrima, The Barn Gallery and The Bell Gallery, quickly became tourist attractions for the area, drawing crowds of interstate and overseas visitors.
Community
Roberta’s career has been heavily intertwined with her community work. Stretching from her volunteer work, community design work, philanthropic efforts, hosting charitable exhibitions, and her generous donations of artwork, awards and time, she has always given back to the community. Roberta has taken pride in not only being part of each community that she calls home, but also to develop an identity, and improve it for generations to come.
Awards
Roberta is lucky enough to be a successful artist, with many of her artwork currently being held within private collections. Along with her commercial success, she has been successful in having her artwork selected in many prestigious award prizes. Her most notable successes are her many commendations in the Blake, Sulman and Wynne Prizes. Despite these high commendations, Roberta is yet to receive the highest accolade for these awards; a task she is still driven to achieve this in the coming years.
