James Lindsey Bird was born in Crook, County Durham in 1903. He first studied Fine Art at Armstrong College, Newcastle, then moved to the Royal College of Art, where for the first year he studied Painting and Architecture, changing his second subject to Engraving, at which he excelled.
In 1931, Lindsey won a travelling Scholarship to Italy, and was accompanied by his young wife. On his return a year later, he took up his first teaching post as Painting Master at Batley School of Art, where he took charge of drawing, painting and design classes.
At
the start of the second world war, he applied to be a war artist, but
to his disappointment was turned down. He did, however, become a fire-watcher,
and it was at this time that his drawings and sketches of the home guard
appeared. After his divorce in 1944, he painted what he claimed to be
his most personal work, 'Cyclamen', taking over two years to complete.
This work was his first to be accepted for exhibition at the Royal Academy.
In 1946 he was appointed Head of Art at Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in Darlington. Here his interest in landscapes developed remarkably, with many of his works at this time set in the North Yorkshire Moors; the Esk Valley becoming a particular favourite.
In 1947, in the North Yorkshire fishing port of Whitby, Lindsey Bird married his second wife, May Edwards. Throughout the forties, most of his subject matter was taken from the striking landscapes around Darlington, from the Dales to the east coast. In 1952, now with two sons, the family moved to a larger house, where there was enough space for a studio. Here he painted many portraits, including past masters of the school.
1963
saw the visit of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother to the 400th Anniversary
of the Grammar School. The following year Lindsey Bird was granted the
honour of a portrait sitting with the Queen Mother in the drawing room
at Clarence House. The resulting pastel sketch glows with the personality
of the sitter, and the subsequent portrait in oils hung in the school
for many years.
After twenty years as Head of the Art Department, Lindsey retired to devote more time to his own work and to the running of Gallery 2. After suffering a stroke, he became frustrated at his inability to draw and paint, but eventually made a full recovery, aided greatly by a move to Scorton in North Yorkshire. Here he enjoyed the new stimulus of village life, and produced a variety of work including illustrated articles for 'The Dalesman', working constantly until his sudden death in 1972.
He leaves a vast collection of drawings, sketches, watercolours and oil paintings.