Georges Scott
Georges Bertin Scott (1873–1943) was a French war correspondent and illustrator for the French magazine L'Illustration during the early 20th century.
He is notable for his paintings of the Balkan Wars and the First World War, and also covered and illustrated scenes from the Spanish Civil War and the early Second World War. One of his major works, an oil painting of his depicting King Constantine I of Greece during the Balkan Wars hangs today in main entry hall of the Presidential Palace in Athens.
Biography
Georges Bertin Scott de Plagnolle was born on 10 juin 1873 in Paris (6th Arrondissement). His father, Henri Louis Scott de Plagnolle (1849-1884), was a painter. His mother, born Sophie Héloïse Brière, was a homemaker. On 12 July 1909, he married opera singer Nelly Martyl in Paris (9th Arrondissement).
As a boy, Scott attended the Alsacian School [l’École alsacienne] in Paris, where he did a great deal of drawing. He would later write, "I was always drawing ... my father was a painter and an illustrator. I was born in an artist's studio."
Scott later studied at the School of Fine Arts [l’École des Beaux-Arts], where he was a student of Édouard Detaille.
The first of Scott's works to be published appeared in the issue of L'Illustration dated 19 March 1892. After that, his drawings and paintings often appeared in the pages of that magazine, as well as in Cocorico and Je Sais Tout.
In 1911, Adolphe Messimy, then serving as war minister of the French Republic, asked Scott and Detaille to draw studies for a project to improve the uniforms worn by French soldiers. While none of these proposed uniforms were adopted, the resulting paintings were published in L'Illustration and Le Sport Universel.
In 1912, Scott served as a war correspondent, accredited to the Bulgarian Army, in the First Balkan War. In the following year, he accompanied the Greek forces on campaign in the Second Balkan War. (It was during the latter conflict that Scott met King Constantine of Greece. Soon thereafter, Scott painted an equestrian portrait of King Constantine.)
The summer of 1914 found Scott in Constantinople, painting a portrait of Djemal Pasha. When, however, the French armed forces mobilized, Scott returned to France, where he served as a war correspondent with the French forces in Alsace. Scott's first drawing to be published during the war, "They Shall Not Pass!" [On ne passe pas!"] appeared in the issue of l'Illustration dated 8 August 1914. In the four years that followed, Scott produced a large number of drawings and paintings for magazines, newspapers, postcards, and recruiting posters. Along with his wife, Nelly Martyl, he also worked with the theatrical troupes entertaining French soldiers at the front.
During the interwar period, Scott painted portraits of King George V of the United Kingdom and Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. He also served as a war correspondent during the Spanish Civil War.
On 13 February 1912, Scott became a knight of the Legion of Honor Légion d'honneur. On 21 January 1928, he was promoted to the rank of "officer" of the same order.
Gallery
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Racing Club v Stade Francais, painted in 1906 for a sports calendar.
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Bulgarian soldiers of the Balkan Wars, painted by Scott for L'Illustration.
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King Constantine I of Greece during the Balkan Wars.
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The Théâtre du Front designed by Scott in 1916 (Illustrated War News).
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Drawn in 1918,"The Soldiers of Foch" depicts soldiers of the US, French, and British armies.
Further reading
- Buttet, H. de, "Georges Scott (1873-1943)," Revue de la Société des Amis du Musée de l'Armée, No. 69, 1965, pp. 53–57.
- Scott, Georges (1913). Dans les Balkans 1912-1913: récits et visions de guerre / Tableaux et croquis de route rapportés par Georges Scott. Récits de Mme Hélène Leune et de MM. Gustave Cirilli, René Puaux, Gustave Babin, Georges Rémond, capitaine de frégate Nel, Jean Leune, Alain de Penennrun. Paris: Librairie Chapelot.
