Ernest Procter

This second painting in our series about Newlyn is by Ernest Procter 1886-1935.

Ernest Procter was born in Tynemouth, Northumberland, the son of a scientist. He was educated at Bootham Friends’ School in York and then came to Newlyn in 1907 to study with the Forbes. He quickly become recognized as their best student and became their assistant.
In 1910-11 he studied at the Atelier Colarossi, Paris, marrying his fellow pupil, the artist, Dod Shaw in 1912.

He served on the Committee of the Newlyn Society of Artists for many years. As a committed Quaker, he was a conscientious objector but worked for the Friends Ambulance Service in France during WWI.
He and Dod returned to Newlyn in 1918, and with Harold Harvey founded a School of Painting called the Harvey-Procter School (1920) which ran throughout the 1920s. The Procters lived at North Corner in Newlyn.
In 1934 Ernest was appointed Director of Studies at Glasgow School of Art but the strain of his new role and the travel involved led to his death in 1935.