£425
Contemporary & Post-War Art | 595
Auction: 16 April 2020 at 12:00 BST
Signed and dated, watercolour on handmade paper
Biography: William Littlejohn was born in Arbroath, Scotland in 1929 and began his artistic training at the Gray’s School of Art in Aberdeen from 1946-50. Although he explored different approaches to painting, Littlejohn favoured watercolours and collage-based media, often incorporating images of his native Angus and Aberdeenshire into his work.
He held his first solo exhibition in 1963 but had already been exhibiting at the Royal Scottish Academy since 1951. He was elected member of the RSA in 1973, and often exhibited with the Royal Society of Painters in Watercolour.
Littlejohn taught at his former high school in Arbroath and subsequently at Gray’s School of Art, later becoming Head of Fine Art until his retirement in 1991. He continued to paint late into life and began to experiment with silver and gold leaf in his later works.
In 2006, Littlejohn gifted the contents of his studio, including 300 watercolours, oils, drawings, and studio objects, to the Royal Scottish Academy. That same year, the RSA held an exhibition in his honour. His work is held in important collections throughout Britain, including the private collections of Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh.