The Reverend Robert Walker Skating on Duddingston Loch
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''The Reverend Robert Walker Skating on Duddingston Loch'', better known by its shorter title ''The Skating Minister'', is an
oil painting Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...
attributed to
Henry Raeburn Sir Henry Raeburn (; 4 March 1756 – 8 July 1823) was a Scottish portrait painter. He served as Portrait Painter to King George IV in Scotland. Biography Raeburn was born the son of a manufacturer in Stockbridge, on the Water of Leith: a fo ...
in the
Scottish National Gallery The Scottish National Gallery (formerly the National Gallery of Scotland) is the national art gallery of Scotland. It is located on The Mound in central Edinburgh, close to Princes Street. The building was designed in a neoclassical style by W ...
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 ...
. Because the painting was passed down through the subject's family, it was practically unknown until 1949, but has since become one of Scotland's best-known paintings. It is considered an icon of
Scottish culture The culture of Scotland refers to the patterns of human activity and symbolism associated with Scotland and the Scottish people. The Scottish flag is blue with a white saltire, and represents the cross of Saint Andrew. Scots law Scotland retain ...
, painted during the
Scottish Enlightenment The Scottish Enlightenment ( sco, Scots Enlichtenment, gd, Soillseachadh na h-Alba) was the period in 18th- and early-19th-century Scotland characterised by an outpouring of intellectual and scientific accomplishments. By the eighteenth century ...
.


History

Raeburn painted this portrait of his friend Robert Walker in about 1795, when he was already a fashionable society portraitist in Edinburgh. When Walker died in 1808, Raeburn was one the trustees of his estate. The painting was inherited by Walker's widow Jean, and when she died in 1831, it was passed down to their daughter, Magdalen, and then to her daughter, Magdalen Scougall. Finally it passed in turn to the younger Magdalen's daughter and Walker's great-granddaughter, Beatrix Scott, who lived in
Boscombe Boscombe is a suburb of Bournemouth, England. Historically in Hampshire, but today in Dorset, it is located to the east of Bournemouth town centre and west of Southbourne. Originally a sparsely inhabited area of heathland, from around 1865 B ...
, Hampshire. In March 1914, Beatrix submitted the painting for auction hoping that it would make 1,000
guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...
s (£1,050), but it failed to find a buyer. In 1926, Beatrix sold the painting privately for £700 to Lucy Hume of
Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...
, who in 1949 sent it for sale at
Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...
in London. In all these various changes of ownership, there is no record of the painting coming to the attention of any art historian and it is not described in any of the early books on Raeburn's work. Christie's photographed ''The Skating Minister'' for their sale catalogue, which is believed to be the first time that the painting had been reproduced. It came to the attention of
Ellis Waterhouse Sir Ellis Kirkham Waterhouse (16 February 1905 – 7 September 1985) was an English art historian and museum director who specialised in Roman baroque and English painting. He was Director of the National Galleries of Scotland (1949–52) ...
, the director of the National Gallery of Scotland (NGS) and was acquired for the nation for £525. The work did not become famous immediately, and it was not included in a book published by the NGS in 1972, ''Pictures for Scotland'', which showcased the most notable works in their collection. However, in 1973, it was reproduced as one of the 'British Painters' set of
commemorative stamps A commemorative stamp is a postage stamp, often issued on a significant date such as an anniversary, to honor or commemorate a place, event, person, or object. The ''subject'' of the commemorative stamp is usually spelled out in print, unlike defi ...
to mark the 150th anniversary of Raeburn's death . The painting was included in a 1997 exhibition of Raeburn's work at the
National Portrait Gallery, London The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London housing a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. It was arguably the first national public gallery dedicated to portraits in the world when it ...
and was chosen to appear on posters advertising the event which were put on display across the capital. It reached an even wider audience in 1998 when ''The Skating Minister'' was included in an exhibition of British paintings, ''Pintura británica'', at the
Museo del Prado The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from the ...
in Madrid, where images of it were widely reproduced on souvenirs.


Robert Walker

The minister portrayed in this painting is the Reverend Robert Walker. He was a
Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...
minister who was born on 30 April 1755 in
Monkton, Ayrshire Monkton is a small village in the parish of Monkton and Prestwick in South Ayrshire, Scotland. The town of Prestwick is around south of the village, and it borders upon Glasgow Prestwick Airport. History The village was originally known as Pr ...
. When Walker was a child, his father had been the minister of the Scots Kirk in
Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...
, so the young Robert almost certainly learnt to skate on the frozen canals of the Netherlands. He was licensed by the
Presbytery of Edinburgh The Presbytery of Edinburgh was one of the presbyteries of the Church of Scotland, being the local presbytery for Edinburgh.Church of Scotland Yearbook, 2010-2011 edition, Its boundary was almost identical to that of the City of Edinburgh Counci ...
in 1770 at the age of fifteen. He married Jean Fraser in 1778 and had five children. He became a member of the
Royal Company of Archers The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a perso ...
in 1779 and their chaplain in 1798. He was minister of the
Canongate Kirk The Kirk of the Canongate, or Canongate Kirk, serves the Parish of Canongate in Edinburgh's Old Town, in Scotland. It is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. The parish includes the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament. It i ...
as well as being a member of the
Edinburgh Skating Club The Edinburgh Skating Club is recognized as the first organized figure skating club."In The Beginning...", ''Skating'' magazine, Jun 1970 While some sources claim the club was established in 1642, most sources accept 1742 or 1744 as the date of i ...
, the first
figure skating club A figure skating club is a local organization of figure skaters, often centered on a single ice rink. Typical club activities include arranging practice ice time, hosting test sessions and competitions, and producing an annual ice show in which clu ...
formed anywhere in the world. The club met on
Duddingston Loch Duddingston Loch is a lake, or freshwater loch, in Edinburgh. It is one of the last two remaining natural lochs within the city, the other being Lochend Loch. It is situated to the south of Holyrood Park and lies southwest of the village of Duddi ...
as shown in the painting or on
Lochend Loch Lochend may refer to the following places: Scotland * Lochend, Edinburgh, a suburb of Edinburgh, named after ** Lochend House, an occupied house containing the remnants of a 16th-century castle ** Lochend Loch (Edinburgh), a small lake near Loche ...
about to the north, when these lochs were suitably frozen.


Appraisal

The painting is unusual in both its composition and its setting; it is unlike any other portrait by Raeburn. The subject matter, perhaps intentionally conveying Walker's ties with Holland, is reminiscent of seventeenth-century Dutch artworks, particularly those of
Hendrick Avercamp Hendrick Avercamp (January 27, 1585 (bapt.) – May 15, 1634 (buried)) was a Dutch painter during the Dutch Golden Age of painting. He was one of the earliest landscape painters of the 17th-century Dutch school, he specialized in painting th ...
. The Reverend skates in the efficient but difficult "travelling position", with both arms folded across his chest, and his stern black outfit contrasts with the wild backdrop of Duddingston Loch. According to
Andrew Graham-Dixon Andrew Michael Graham-Dixon (born 26 December 1960) is a British art historian and broadcaster. Life and career Early life and education Andrew Graham-Dixon is a son of the barrister Anthony Philip Graham-Dixon (1929–2012), Q.C., and (M ...
, "The pinkish grey crags and sky have been painted with great freedom, whereas the figure of Reverend Robert Walker himself is so tightly drawn and painted that he appears almost as a black silhouette against an icy, vaporous wilderness. Perhaps this was the artist's way of suggesting that, for all his apparent probity and self-restraint, the minister was at heart something of a romantic – a man, at any rate, with a penchant for communing with nature." Art historian Duncan Thomson notes that, "The filigree within the buckle on the strap at the skater's right knee and the taut complexities of the arrangement of the pink ribbons that binds the skates to his shoes are a reminder of the manipulative skills that Raeburn must have developed during his apprenticeship
s a jeweller and goldsmith S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''. History ...
... perhaps the tour de force of observation and the finding of equivalent forms are the marks that the skater (or those who have circled with him) has made on the ice: the curving grooves incised with some appropriate tool in a liquid, greyish white which has been spread over a darker grey that has been allowed to dry and the edges of these tiny furrows, more pronounced towards the bottom of the picture, tipped in with a purer white to simulate the froth of ice thrown aside by the cutting blade."


Attribution controversy

In March 2005, a curator from the
Scottish National Portrait Gallery The Scottish National Portrait Gallery is an art museum on Queen Street, Edinburgh. The gallery holds the national collections of portraits, all of which are of, but not necessarily by, Scots. It also holds the Scottish National Photography Co ...
suggested that the painting was by French artist
Henri-Pierre Danloux Henri-Pierre Danloux (24 February 1753 – 3 January 1809) was a French painter and draftsman. He was born in Paris. Brought up by his architect uncle, Danloux was a pupil of Lépicié and later of Vien, whom he followed to Rome in 1775. In 17 ...
rather than by Henry Raeburn. Once this information had been brought to the attention of the Gallery, the label on the painting was altered to read “Recent research has suggested that the picture was actually painted ..by Henri-Pierre Danloux.” Since this time, many people have debated this idea. It has been argued that Danloux was in Edinburgh during the 1790s, which happens to be the time period when ''The Skating Minister ''was created. Supposedly the canvas and scale of the painting appears to be that of a French painter, although Raeburn critics argue otherwise. Despite continuing controversy about its attribution, ''The Skating Minister'' was sent to New York City in 2005 to be exhibited in
Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...
for Tartan Day, an important Scottish celebration. James Holloway, director of the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, told ''
The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its par ...
'' newspaper that his "gut reaction" was that it is by Raeburn. The newspaper reported that "it is understood that
Sir Timothy Clifford Sir Timothy Peter Plint Clifford (born 26 January 1946) is a British art historian. Clifford was the director of the National Galleries of Scotland from 1984 to 2006. He was known for his innovative methods for hanging and displaying art, and f ...
, director-general of the National Galleries of Scotland, now accepts the painting is a Raeburn."


In popular culture

Cambridge UK based musical group
Clean Bandit Clean Bandit are an English electronic music group, formed in Cambridge in 2008. They have had four number 1 hits and ten top 10 hits on the UK Singles Chart. They direct and produce their own music videos, many of which have been nominated for ...
based a character in their music video for their song " Dust Clears" on ''The Skating Minister'' painting. The video has been posted by the band on
YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
. The skating minister is portrayed by skater Nick Martin and the skating scenes were filmed on Lake Vattern in Sweden. A copy of ''The Skating Minister'' can be seen displayed in the apartment of con-man
Neal Caffrey Neal George Caffrey (born Neal George Bennett) is the main character of the USA Network original series '' White Collar''. Neal is a criminal consultant for the White Collar Crime Division of the FBI in New York City. He is a world-class forger ...
in the USA television series ''
White Collar White collar may refer to: * White-collar worker, a salaried professional or an educated worker who performs semi-professional office, administrative, and sales-coordination tasks, as opposed to a blue-collar worker, whose job requires manual labor ...
''. In
Alexander McCall Smith Alexander "Sandy" McCall Smith, CBE, FRSE (born 24 August 1948), is a British writer. He was raised in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and formerly Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh. He became an expert on medical law and ...
's novel ''The Sunday Philosophy Club,'' a character sends a card bearing Raeburn's picture to the protagonist, Isabel Dalhousie. Spanish architect
Enric Miralles Enric Miralles Moya (12 February 1955 – 3 July 2000) was a Spanish architect from Barcelona. He graduated from the Barcelona School of Architecture (ETSAB) at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) in 1978. After establishing h ...
said that his west window panels at the 2004
Scottish Parliament Building ; sco, Scots Pairlament Biggin , native_name_lang = , former_names = , alternate_names = Holyrood , image = Scottish Parliament building - geograph.org.uk - 2469654.jpg , image_alt = , caption ...
invoked the form of ''The Skating Minister''.


See also

*''
The Skater ''The Skater'' is a 1782 oil on canvas portrait of William Grant (Master of the Rolls), Sir William Grant by the American artist Gilbert Stuart. Painted while Stuart was living in London, it was the work that first brought the artist broad recogn ...
'', 1782 painting by
Gilbert Stuart Gilbert Charles Stuart ( Stewart; December 3, 1755 – July 9, 1828) was an American painter from Rhode Island Colony who is widely considered one of America's foremost portraitists. His best-known work is an unfinished portrait of George Washi ...


Footnotes


Further reading

* Tells the story behind this painting. It gives details about the artist, Walker, and the setting of the painting.


External links


"Scottish art icon 'may be French
3 March 2005 article from ''BBC News''.
Works by Sir Henry Raeburn
at the National Galleries of Scotland – Online Collections {{DEFAULTSORT:Skating Minister 1790s paintings Church of Scotland Scottish art Scottish paintings Paintings in the National Galleries of Scotland Paintings by Henry Raeburn Works by Scottish people Paintings of people Ice skating Sports paintings 1790s in Scotland Cultural depictions of religious leaders Cultural depictions of Scottish men Scotland in art