I recently visited the exhibition being held at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery in Glasgow of works by a group of artists who became known as The Glasgow Boys. They included George Henry, Edward Arthur Walton, Arthur Melville, Sir John Lavery, Sir James Guthrie and Edward Aitkinson Hornel. It is remarkable to see so many of their paintings on display together and in order to appreciate the many excellent paintings requires several visits. There are over 140 works in the exhibition and is the first time the Glasgow Boys have been shown together in over 40 years. There are so many great paintings it is difficult to choose any in particular. However the painting by George Henry and Edward Aitkinson Hornel of The Druids bringing in the Mistletoe is one of my favourites which you can see at;

http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/Visitors/MuseumsGalleries/AddToBasket.htm?Image=216

I also very much enjoyed the watercolours of Arthur Melville. His use of strong colour belies the mistaken belief by some people that watercolour is a wishy washy medium, incapable of achieving great depth and strength of colour. I was particularly drawn to the strong blues and oranges he used in his work. There is a video being shown at the exhibition, part of which gives an interesting insight into how Arthur Melville achieved his wonderful colours.

Another great exhibition being held this summer in Kirkcudbright Town Hall is of work by many talented women who attended The Glasgow School of Art around the same time as the Glasgow Boys. This group has now become known as the Glasgow Girls. Frances and Margaret MacDonald, the Gilmour sisters, Ann Macbeth, Jessie M. King, Jessie Wylie Newberry, Norah Neilston Gray, Bessie MacNicol, Stansmore Dean, Eleanor Allen Moore, Chris J Fergusson and Annie French were part of this group. Many of the pieces in the exhibition have never been seen in public before and range from small beautifully detailed works in pen, ink and watercolour to large scale oil paintings. There are also lovely pieces of jewellery, embroidery, enamelling and silver boxes.

Aileen

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