Early days
As early as prehistoric times, the northern regions developed distinctive features. The earliest evidence of this in Scotland comes from Neolithic carvings. In Aberdeenshire, engraved stone spheres reveal geometric patterns, spirals and broken lines.
From the 7th century onwards, Christian art developed in the monasteries of the Hebrides. The first illuminated manuscripts are thought to have come from the monastery of Saint Columba (Iona). The Book of Kells is the finest example of this period. The country's poverty, combined with the decline of Christianity, slowed production until the Renaissance.
The portraitists
The 16th century saw a slow revival. The first Scottish painters to make a name for themselves in the following century were portraitists. George Jamesone, born in Aberdeen in 1587, built his reputation on his portraits of local personalities. It was at the instigation of Charles I that Jamesone established his reputation. Visiting Edinburgh in 1633, the king invited him to reproduce portraits of all the former kings of Scotland. He also painted self-portraits and landscapes, always in a dark, neutral palette, with a concern for realism.
John Michael Wright (1617-1694) trained with Jamesone. An erudite artist, he spent a long time in Rome. Considered a leader, he was appreciated for his realistic style. Like his master, he built his reputation on portraits of dignitaries.
Their works are now part of the collections of the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, reserved for the world's finest portraits. The Scottish National Gallery is dedicated to Scottish artists.
Scottish Romanticism
This Europe-wide movement appeared in Scotland at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. Here, too, the emphasis was on sentiment. One of its favorite subjects is the Ossianic cycle. The poems of the 3rd-century Scottish bard Ossian, translated by James MacPherson, were all the rage in Europe. Patriotic sentiment was awakened, and the Highlands revealed their charms. The wilderness was glorified in dramatic compositions such as Jacob More's The Waterfalls of the Clyde. Alexander Runciman (1736-1785) is said to be the first artist to have painted Scottish landscapes.
The influence of Romanticism is evident until the early 19th century in the works of Henry Raeburn (1756-1823), Alexander Nasmyth and John Knox. Although he spent his entire career in Scotland, Raeburn was the first Scottish artist of international stature. This portraitist defined Scottish distinctiveness by depicting men in tartans against a backdrop of Scottish mountains. Born in Edinburgh, he traveled to Italy in 1786, as did Nasmyth. The latter is credited with founding the Scottish landscape tradition. Knox, also a landscape painter, was the first to paint the Glasgow countryside.
Glasgow Boys
From the end of the 19th century, Glasgow dominated the art scene, thanks to the Glasgow School of Arts, whose most famous pupil was undoubtedly Charles Rennie Mackintosh, master of Art Nouveau.
The Glasgow Boys group opposed academicism. These painters, active between 1887 and 1895, were influenced by the French Impressionists and assisted by the Scottish Colorists, whose strong works were inspired by French Post-Impressionism and Fauvism. Glasgow Boys included MacGregor, James Guthrie, John Lavery, George Henry and Edward Walton.
Meanwhile, the Glasgow Girls (Jessie Newbery, Anne Macbeth, sisters Margaret and Frances MacDonald) exhibit decorative art and design in a style that combines Art Nouveau and Celtic influences.
Modern schools
Charles Rennie Mackintosh (1868-1928) influenced all fields of creativity. An architect, designer and watercolourist from the Arts and Craft movement, he was at the forefront of Scottish Art Nouveau. His refined style combines tradition and modernity. In addition to the Glasgow School of Art, we can admire the House for an Art Lover in Glasgow, built according to his plans after his death. Mackintosh claimed that if he had talent, his wife had genius. Charles worked closely with Margaret. It was she who provided the floral touch that softened Charles's rectilinear style. This was evident in the stained-glass windows and murals he painted on commission. In his later years, Mackintosh painted landscapes and flower studies that intertwined the styles of both spouses
The 1920s saw the emergence of other groups, such as the Scottish Colorists. It was not until the end of the twentieth century that their influence was felt in contemporary art. Some Colorists were active in France, following in the footsteps of Monet, Matisse and Cézanne. Their leader, John Duncan Fergusson (1874-1961), made frequent trips to Paris. Francis Cadell, Samuel Peploe and Leslie Hunter also belonged to this movement.
The Edinburgh School of the 1930s brought together William Gillies, William MacTaggart and Anne Redpath around a modern approach to the Scottish landscape. Much later, other artists such as Alan Davie and Edouardo Paolozzi turned to abstraction.
Painter and sculptor Eduardo Paolozzi (1924-2005) was the first Scottish artist to achieve such international renown. His art foreshadowed the pop art explosion. He took part in the British pavilion at the 1952 Venice Biennale, which saw the emergence of a new generation of sculptors: Reg Butler, Lynn Chadwick and Kenneth Armitage. Works by Paolozzi have joined the collections of the Scottish National Gallery , alongside Raeburn's famous Skater, Antonio Canova's Three Graces and Gauguin's Vision after the Sermon.
Contemporary scene
The generation born in the 1960s is exploding onto the international scene. The best-known, and also the most highly-rated on the market, is undoubtedly the figurative painter Peter Doig. Influenced by the German Romantics, he paints vast, wild and melancholy landscapes. In 2016, his painting of a rainbow tunnel beside the freeway sold for almost 13 million euros. In 2024, he was the subject of an exhibition at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.
Born in 1966, video artist Douglas Gordon lives and works in Glasgow. His work combines projections, photographs, installations and texts. Gordon likes to appropriate images and stage them in unexpected contexts. Blind James takes a black-and-white portrait of actor James Mason, cutting out his eyes to create a blind version. This work belongs to a series of mythical actors: Cary Grant, Kim Novak, Marlon Brando and Paul Newman also inspired Gordon.
Rob Mulholland disperses his work into the public domain to question the relationship between man and nature. An environmental sculptor, Mulholland has installed over 600 mirrored silhouettes on wilderness sites. In Rutherglen, a six-meter figure marks the entrance to Cuningar Woodland Park. The surface of his sculptures absorbs and reflects the constant movements of the environment and the Scottish light.
For sculpture enthusiasts, a visit to the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art is completed outside with admirable works, including one by Henry Moore. Also in Edinburgh, The Fruitmarket Gallery presents the rising generation alongside established names: Claire Barclay, Louise Hopkins, Callum Innes, Lucy Skaer and Tony Swain have all made their mark here.
Glasgow's dynamism has extended to the street since the 1970s. The city supports urban art projects by commissioning big names such as Rogue-One, Art Pistol, Recoat and Smug. Maps of the City Centre Mural Trail will guide your steps. A few landmarks: in the center, Rogue-One has painted "Hip-Hop Puppets" on John Street. The Barras is home to a wealth of urban art, including frescoes by Mark Worst and Rogue-One, shown here with a young pirate. The Maryhill Road area was the subject of a public art commission. Elph's fresco depicts three children in a tribute to the diversity of the population.
