Author Archives: Billy Rough

A ‘penchant for the dramatic’: Rothenstein and Modern Theatre

Not that familiar a name today, but in the late 19th and early 20th century William Rothenstein was one of England’s most intriguing artists. Follow the link below to discover more about his relationship with the British theatre. Enjoy!

https://www.tate.org.uk/research/publications/in-focus/the-dolls-house-william-rothenstein/rothenstein-and-modern-theatre

‘My name is Pistol called…’ William Mollison, George Henry and the challenge of theatre portraiture

During my research into The Orchar Collection, I came across this painting by the Scottish artist George Henry of the Dundee born actor William Mollison. Well, Scottish Art and the Theatre? This was too much of a draw for me! So I wrote a little piece on it for The British Art Journal (XV, 2, p. 54-58)

The Art of Crossing: Introduction: Kate Downie. Zero to Fifty: The Road Bridge Diaries

As part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of the opening of the Forth Road Bridge I was very privileged to be asked to write the introductory essay to the wonderful Kate Downie’s catalogue. Kate was artist-in-residence on the 50th anniversary project and produced a beautiful series of works on the bridge. You can read more about the project here: Rough, W. W. & Downie, K., 1 Aug 2014, Kate Downie. Zero to Fifty: The Road Bridge Diaries.

There is also a video of Kate discussing the project and the exhibition at Hopetoun House in 2014:

‘A cluster of butterflies: James Guthrie Orchar and his collection of Whistler etchings and drypoints’

Dundee is home to one of the most significant small collections of the artists James Abbott McNeill Whistler and his brother-in-law, Sir Francis Seymour Haden. I was luck enough to gain access to the McManus: Dundee’s Art Gallery & Museum to view these artists beautiful prints. Here’s a link to a piece I wrote on the collection for the Journal of the Scottish Society for Art History (Volume 16, 2011-12)

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