Lot 402
JOHN HENRY LORIMER (1856-1936)
PORTRAIT OF THE YOUNG ROBERT STODART LORIMER
Auction: Design Since 1860 Day Two | Thurs 15th October | Lots 246 to 524
Description
red chalk
Dimensions
50cm x 43cm (frame size 74cm x 64.5cm)
Provenance
Kellie Castle, Fife, thence by descent in the Lorimer family to the present owners.
Footnote
Robert Stodart Lorimer (1864–1929) trained under Sir Robert Rowand Anderson, later working in the London office of G. F. Bodley. In 1878, his family leased Kellie Castle in Fife as a holiday home, and Robert spent much of his youth there, helping with his father’s restoration work from the age of 14. Kellie had a formative influence on his interest in Scottish historic architecture, craftsmanship and interiors.
Returning to Edinburgh from London in 1893, Lorimer established his own practice, restoring historic houses and designing new ones, including Ardkinglas and Rowallan Castle. His reputation was enhanced by his work on the Thistle Chapel at St Giles’ Cathedral and the Scottish National War Memorial at Edinburgh Castle. He also undertook war cemeteries, church restorations and university buildings. He was knighted in 1911 and appointed K.B.E. in 1927.