Background
Pilot was born on 9 October 1898, at Street John"s, Newfoundland, to Edward Frederick Pilot and his wife Barbara (née Merchant).
Pilot was born on 9 October 1898, at Street John"s, Newfoundland, to Edward Frederick Pilot and his wife Barbara (née Merchant).
He later studied in Montreal under William Brymner, then, in March 1916, joined the army.
As a child, Pilot assisted Cullen in his studio, and the two would take sketching trips together. He served as a gunner on trench mortars in the Canadian Expeditionary Force, Fifth Division Artillery, during World War I. From 1920-1922, he studied at the Académie Julian in Paris. In 1922, he exhibited at the Paris Salon.
His work took on Impressionist influences after he visited the artists" colony at Concarneau.
His his first solo show was in 1927, at the Watson Art Galleries. He was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal in 1953.
Paintings by Pilot were presented to Winston Churchill and to Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh. Others are in the collection of the National Gallery of Canada.
A retrospective exhibition of his work was held at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in 1969.
Royal Canadian Academy of Arts]
He re-enlisted in 1941, during World World War II, serving as a Captain in The Black Watch, and was mentioned in dispatches while in Italy, which resulted in him being made an Member of the Order of the British Empire (Administration Member of the Order of the British Empire) in 1944.