Hamel was an apprentice for the artist Antoine Plamondon (1804-1895). Through this experience, Hamel learned to draw and paint in a European style. In 1838 he painted 'Three Indian Chiefs Leading a Delegation to Quebec. In 1840, Hamel opened his own art studio, but decided to continue his education abroad to improve his business as a professional artist taking commissions. In 1846 he returned to Canada to Quebec. Throughout his career he travelled throughout
Canada East and
Canada West, painting portraits of such notables as Sir
John Beverley Robinson,
Denis-Benjamin Viger, Sir
Allan MacNab,
Louis-Joseph Papineau,
John Sandfield Macdonald, and Sir
Étienne Taché. He worked quickly, often completing a portrait in a single day. Hamel also painted religious pictures for various commissions, and a series of "imaginative" or "semi-imaginative" portraits of
Jacques Cartier,
Samuel de Champlain,
Jean Talon,
Montcalm, and General
James Murray. The image of Cartier even appeared on a banknote. It is estimated that Hamel painted more than 2000 portraits during his lifetime. In 1848, he painted portraits of
Robert Baldwin and
Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine. In 1850-1, he painted
Egerton Ryerson. In 1853, he painted 'Madame Renaud and Her Daughters Wilhemine and Emma'. His painting 'L'Abbé Edouard Faucher', painted in 1855, now hangs at Eglise de Saint-Laurent, Lotbiniere. His painting of Sir
Allan MacNab, painted in 1853, hangs in the
House of Commons of Canada. ==Family==