David Watson Stephenson (25 March 1842 – 18 March 1904) was a Scottish sculptor, executing portraits and monuments in marble and bronze.

Biography

Stevenson was born in

Ratho Ratho ( gd, Ràthach) is a village in the Rural West Edinburgh area of Edinburgh, Scotland. Its population at the 2011 census was 1,634 based on the 2010 definition of the locality. It was formerly in the old county of Midlothian. Ratho Statio ...

, Midlothian, Scotland, on 25 March 1842, the son of William Stevenson and Margaret Kay. He studied at the

Trustees' Academy Edinburgh College of Art (ECA) is one of eleven schools in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Edinburgh. Tracing its history back to 1760, it provides higher education in art and design, architecture, histor ...

, Edinburgh. From 1860 he took an eight-year apprenticeship under the sculptor William Brodie. He won the

South Kensington South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with ...

National Prize for student sculpture with a statuette of the Venus de Milo and completed his studies in

Rome, Italy , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (Romulus and Remus, legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg ...

. He worked as assistant to Sir John Steell on the

Prince Albert Prince Albert most commonly refers to: *Albert, Prince Consort (1819–1861), consort of Queen Victoria *Albert II, Prince of Monaco (born 1958), present head of state of Monaco Prince Albert may also refer to: Royalty * Albert I of Belgium ...

Monument forming the centrepiece of

Charlotte Square 300px, Robert Adam's palace-fronted north side Charlotte Square is a garden square in Edinburgh, Scotland, part of the New Town, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The square is located at the west end of George Street and was intended ...

in Edinburgh. Here he added figures of "Science & Learning" and "Labour" on the corners. He became known for his portrait sculptures executed in marble and bronze. His best known and most iconic work is the 1869 bronze figure of William Wallace on the

Wallace Monument The National Wallace Monument (generally known as the Wallace Monument) is a 67 metre tower on the shoulder of the Abbey Craig, a hilltop overlooking Stirling in Scotland. It commemorates Sir William Wallace, a 13th- and 14th-century Scottish hero ...

near Stirling. He became a member of the

Royal Scottish Academy The Royal Scottish Academy (RSA) is the country’s national academy of art. It promotes contemporary Scottish art. The Academy was founded in 1826 by eleven artists meeting in Edinburgh. Originally named the Scottish Academy, it became the ...

. He lived in a townhouse at 2 Castle Terrace facing onto St Cuthbert's Churchyard at the west end of

Princes Street Princes Street ( gd, Sràid nam Prionnsan) is one of the major thoroughfares in central Edinburgh, Scotland and the main shopping street in the capital. It is the southernmost street of Edinburgh's New Town, stretching around 1.2 km (three ...

. Stevenson died on 18 March 1904, aged 61. He is buried with his younger brother, William Grant Stevenson, also a sculptor, in the south-west section of Grange Cemetery in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. The bronze portrait relief head of William on the monument was sculpted by Henry Snell Gamley.

Works

Stevenson's most loved and publicly seen statue is the figure of William Wallace on the

in Stirling. This fine statue should not be confused with the far cruder, modern statue near the visitor centre, but stands on the side of the monument itself. Stevenson made the figures of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

James VI of Scotland James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until hi ...

and Halbert Glendinning on the Scott Monument, Edinburgh (1874); the

Henry Bolckow Henry William Ferdinand Bolckow, originally Heinrich Wilhelm Ferdinand Bölckow, (8 December 1806 – 18 June 1878) was a Victorian industrialist and Member of Parliament, acknowledged as being one of the founders of modern Middlesbrough. In a ...

Monument,

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

(1881);

Robert Tannahill Robert Tannahill (3 June 1774 – 17 May 1810) was a Scottish poet of labouring class origin. Known as the 'Weaver Poet', he wrote poetry in English and lyrics in Scots in the wake of Robert Burns. Life Robert Tannahill was born in Castle St ...

, Paisley (1884) and ( Mary Campbell (Highland Mary)),

Dunoon Dunoon (; gd, Dùn Omhain) is the main town on the Cowal peninsula in the south of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is located on the western shore of the upper Firth of Clyde, to the south of the Holy Loch and to the north of Innellan. As well ...

(1896). His sculptures of

Sir John Steell Sir John Robert Steell (Aberdeen 18 September 1804 – 15 September 1891) was a Scottish sculptor. He modelled many of the leading figures of Scottish history and culture, and is best known for a number of sculptures displayed in Edinburgh, ...

a fellow sculptor (1887) and Napier of Murchiston (1898) are held in the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. He also created five of the multiple statues on the exterior of the Portrait Gallery:

James Hutton James Hutton (; 3 June O.S.172614 June 1726 New Style. – 26 March 1797) was a Scottish geologist, agriculturalist, chemical manufacturer, naturalist and physician. Often referred to as the father of modern geology, he played a key role i ...

; John Napier; King James VI; James Campbell and Adam Duncan. He created the Saracen Fountain in cast iron for the Kelvingrove International Exhibition of 1901. It was later moved to Alexandra Park, Glasgow. This included a repeat of three figures from an earlier monument to

John Platt (MP) ''For other people named John Platt, see John Platt.'' John Platt (16 September 1817 – 18 May 1872) ) was an English manufacturer of textile machinery and Liberal politician. Platt was born at Dobcross, West Riding of Yorkshire, the son of He ...

in Oldham (1878). Copies were made for Town Hall Park in Warrington (destroyed 1942) and the Sammy Marks Zoological Gardens in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...

, South Africa. In 1868, he created the impressive Celtic cross as a memorial to

Horatio McCulloch Horatio McCulloch (November 1805 – 24 June 1867), sometimes written MacCulloch or M'Culloch, was a Scottish landscape painter. Life He was born in Glasgow in November 1805 the son of Alexander McCulloch, a cotton merchant, and his wife, Ma ...

on his grave in

Warriston Cemetery Warriston Cemetery is a cemetery in Edinburgh. It lies in Warriston, one of the northern suburbs of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was built by the then newly-formed Edinburgh Cemetery Company, and occupies around of land on a slightly sloping si ...

. In 1884, he created the statue of Hygieia with Thomas Bonnar's classical "St Bernard's Well" in Stockbridge, Edinburgh. File:Robert Tannahill by David Watson Stevenson.JPG, Robert Tannahill by David Watson Stevenson File:Detail on Robert Tannahill's statue by David Watson Stevenson.JPG, Detail on Robert Tannahill's statue by David Watson Stevenson File:Robert Louis Stevenson by David Watson Stevenson, SNPG.JPG, Robert Louis Stevenson by David Watson Stevenson File:Horatio McCulloch's grave in Warriston Cemetery, Edinburgh.JPG, Horatio McCulloch's monument File:St Bernard's Well 02.jpg, Statue of

Hygieia Hygieia is a goddess from Greek, as well as Roman, mythology (also referred to as: Hygiea or Hygeia; ; grc, Ὑγιεία or , la, Hygēa or ). Hygieia is a goddess of health ( el, ὑγίεια – ''hugieia''), cleanliness and hygiene. Her ...

References

External links

* Dictionary of National Biography, 1912 supplement
Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851–1951
(list of works)
National Galleries Scotland: David Watson Stevenson
(bust of

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...

)
David Watson Stevenson
at Find A Grave {{DEFAULTSORT:Stevenson, David Watson Scottish sculptors Scottish male sculptors 1842 births 1904 deaths Alumni of the Edinburgh College of Art Burials at the Grange Cemetery