Aline Myles Banting

Aline Banting was a fourth-generation Hamiltonian. She studied with John and Hortense Gordon and John Sloan at Hamilton Technical Institute, and then at the Ontario College of Art. She was a well-respected artist in her time, exhibiting regularly with the Art Association of Montreal, the Royal Canadian Academy, and the Ontario Society of Artists, among others. She was a member of the Women's Art Association of Hamilton and the Contemporary Artists of Hamilton. Her work is found in the Art Gallery of Hamilton's permanent collection, as well as other national and international collections.

Her passion for portraiture started early in life. As a child she painted her relatives. From the 1940s to 1980s she organized groups of artists who pooled resources to hire studio space and life models. She loved people and was intrigued the variety of faces around her. Her curiosity about others often resulted in an invitation to sit for a portrait.

Over her lifetime she painted hundreds of portraits, many of them Hamiltonians. During the Depression, when resources were limited, she continued to paint on any materials she could find - cardboard boxes, wallpaper, and even on the backs of earlier portraits. Many of her portraits on masonite have other portraits painted on the reverse.

 How we were introduced to Aline Banting...

Discovering Aline Banting

Last winter we were invited to a client's home for a Collection Management project. He had inherited a wealth of paintings made by his mother and needed help sorting through them. His mother was Aline Myles Banting.

Several of the paintings had been given prominent spots on the walls of the home, but the majority were yet to be organized. We visited the house and made a full inventory of the collection including pictures, descriptions, measurements, and conditions.

As we sorted through the paintings we were amazed at the depth and range of portraits Aline painted. They span several decades and depict people of many different ages and backgrounds. The faces of so many Hamiltonians were captured by Aline's brush. Her technique is warm and gentle. You can tell she adored portraiture and was smitten with her subjects.

In the end the Bantings had a full catalogue of Aline's paintings, including the many florals and landscapes she produced as well. With the catalogue the Bantings were able to properly assess the collection and decide what next steps to take.

And yes, Aline was related (through marriage) to the famous Dr. Frederick Banting, who, among other things, was an accomplished painter in his own right. Her husband, Maitland Banting, was also a painter.

Collection Management and other Services at the gallery...