William York MacGregor
William York MacGregor (born October 14, 1855 in Finnart , Dunbartonshire , † September 28, 1923 in Bridge of Allan , Stirlingshire ) was a Scottish late Impressionist painter and is considered the founder and mentor of the Glasgow Boys , a group of artists from the 19th and early 20th century.
life and work
William York MacGregor was the third son of John MacGregor and his second wife Margaret York. His father, John MacGregor, was a master shipbuilder and partner in the Tod and Macgregor company . He died on September 23, 1858, a few days before William York's third birthday.
MacGregor studied at the Western Academy in Glasgow together with James Paterson (1854-1932). Then the two attended the Glasgow School of Art , where they were taught by Robert Greenless (1829-1896), among others . 1877 they devoted themselves in St Andrews , Stonehaven and Nairnshire of plein air painting . During this time MacGregor was a student of James Docharty (1829-1878). That same year, MacGregor and Paterson applied for admission to the Glasgow Art Club , but were harshly dismissed. Applications from fellow painters James Guthrie and Edward Arthur Walton were also rejected. MacGregor and Paterson then left Glasgow. MacGregor took lessons from Alphonse Legros at the Slade School of Fine Art in London and Paterson studied in Paris with Jacquesson de la Chevreuse and later with Jean-Paul Laurens . Guthrie and Walton were also in Paris with Joseph Crawhall .
After completing his studies at Slade School, MacGregor returned to Glasgow and lived at 134 Bath Street, where he set up a studio. This atelier became a regular meeting place for Paterson, Walton, Crawhall, George Henry , John Lavery , Thomas Corsan Morton and other artists. There they exchanged models and materials and discussed the new ideas of young French painters like Jules Bastien-Lepage , whose plein air painting fascinated them. This group formed the core of the Glasgow Boys , with MacGregor being the founder and mentor of the artists' association, as he was a bit older than the other participants and was also financially secure. He also gave instructions and allowed himself to be clear about his criticism. Only James Gutherie and Arthur Melville did not take part in these meetings, but instead exchanged ideas with their artist colleagues on the summer painting excursions. From 1881 MacGregor lived at 3 Park Street West in Glasgow with his mother Margaret York MacGregor, his half-sister Janet and his cousin William Yorke.
In the winter of 1882-83, MacGregor began work on a large Bastien-Lepage-inspired painting of a girl selling vegetables at a stall. MacGregor removed the life-size figure in 1884, probably after seeing similar pictures of Guthrie. The result was the still life The Vegetable Stall , one of the most important realistic paintings created in Scotland in the 1880s and now on display in the Scottish National Gallery in Edinburgh . MacGregor's other plein-air pictures show a skillful use of direct sunlight, but reveal the depiction of people as the painter's great weakness.
After 1885, MacGregor moved from Glasgow back because he under severe asthma suffering, and settled in Bridge of Allan in the county of Stirlingshire down to be healthy. He spent two winters in the south of England, probably with his brother Peter MacGregor, who lived in Worthing . From 1888 to 1890 he stayed in South Africa . During this time, James Guthrie gradually replaced him as the leading figure in the Glasgow Boys . After his health improved significantly, MacGregor returned to Scotland but kept loose contact with the Glasgow School during the 1890s . His landscapes, never popular with collectors, remained bold in color and execution. In 1892 he was made a member of the New English Art Club and in 1898 he was elected to the Royal Scottish Academy , where he was able to regularly show his paintings at the annual exhibitions. He was also allowed to exhibit his work at the Royal Academy of Arts in London on two occasions .
During these years he lived at Albyn Lodge in Bridge of Allen with his mother Margaret York and half-sister Janet. In 1901 his brother Peter MacGregor died. On April 30, 1923, MacGregor married Jessie Watson (1879–1941) at the age of 67, but died that same year on September 28. His longtime friend James Paterson wrote that William York MacGregor loved tasty food, drank little or nothing, smoked fine cigars but never a pipe, was an avid reader, interested in classical music but always shy with women.
gallery
French landscape
The Vegetable Stall (1884)
The Carse Of Stirling (1884)
Crail Fife
Canal (1895)
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | MacGregor, William York |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | MacGregor, William Yorke |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Scottish late impressionism painter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 14, 1855 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Finnart , Dumbartonshire |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 28, 1923 |
| Place of death | Bridge of Allan , Stirlingshire |