Born in New York City to Raymond Sr. and Elizabeth Weston, Bissell graduated from Towson High School in 1954.
Bissell wrote a doctoral dissertation on the Italian Baroque painter Orazio Gentileschi.
[2] He would dedicate the rest of his career to studying that period of art, as well as Orazio's daughter, Artemisia.
While studying at Michigan, Bissell began his teaching career in 1964 as an instructor of art history at the University of Wisconsin.
He rose through the professional ranks to become full Professor, and eventually chaired the department.