The grave of James Fillans, Woodside Cemetery, Paisley

James Fillans (27 March 1808 – 27 September 1852) was a Scottish sculptor, poet and artist with a short but influential career in the early 19th century.

Life

He was born in Wilsontown,

Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland. Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotl ...

. In early life he worked as a handloom weaver, the typical trade of the area. In his early teens he was apprenticed to a mason/builder in Paisley (Hall McLatchie). During this period it seems he was responsible for the highly impressive Corinthian capitals on the Glasgow Royal Exchange (1827) (now the Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art) earning him the nickname of "The Young Athenian". He moved to

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

in the early 1830s. Setting up his own practice there he employed his younger brothers; Robert Fillans and John Fillans. Receiving financial backing from James Walkinshaw he trained more formally in

Paris, France Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

in 1835 before settling in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

at 82 Baker Street. Whilst in London he met Sir

Francis Chantrey Sir Francis Leggatt Chantrey (7 April 1781 – 25 November 1841) was an English sculptor. He became the leading portrait sculptor in Regency era Britain, producing busts and statues of many notable figures of the time. Chantrey's most notable w ...

, who recommended him to several patrons. Incoming commissions allowed him to move to

High Holborn High Holborn ( ) is a street in Holborn and Farringdon Without, Central London, which forms a part of the A40 route from London to Fishguard. It starts in the west at the eastern end of St Giles High Street and runs past the Kingsway and ...

. A commission to sculpt Archibald Oswald took him to

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in 1841, also permitting a visit to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and a second trip to Paris on his return. The bulk of his commissions were Scottish and he returned to

in 1851. He also was a portrait painter, exhibiting in the Scottish Royal Academy from 1837 to 1850. He was father to the sculptors James Davidson Fillans (1850 – 1906 (buried Rookwood cemetery NSW)) and Wilhelmina Fillans. Hill and Adamson photographed Fillans with his daughters in 1845. Sir Daniel Macnee painted his portrait. He is buried in Woodside Cemetery, Paisley beneath his own sculpture which he was working on for the grave of his father, who lies with him, when he died.Glasgow:City of Sculpture The monument stands alone, to the north-west of the crematorium, on the path descending into the lower north section.

Works

*Heads of the Corinthian columns on the Glasgow Royal Exchange Buildings (1827) *Bust of Archibald Campbell of Blythswood,

Paisley Sheriff Court Paisley Sheriff Court is a municipal structure in St James Street, Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland. The complex, which was the headquarters of Renfrewshire County Council and is currently used as a courthouse, is a Category A listed building. ...

(1838) *Bust of John Burnet (1840) *Monument to James Dick, Old Kirkyard,

Ayr Ayr (; sco, Ayr; gd, Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. It is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire Subdivisions of Scotland, council area and the historic Shires of Scotlan ...

(1840) *Monument to the author Dugald Moore,

Glasgow Necropolis The Glasgow Necropolis is a Victorian cemetery in Glasgow, Scotland. It is on a low but very prominent hill to the east of Glasgow Cathedral (St. Mungo's Cathedral). Fifty thousand individuals have been buried here. Typical for the period, only ...

(1841) *Monument to Dr Jacobus Brown,

(1846) *Bust of Christopher North, Paisley Museum (1848) *Statue of

Sir James Shaw, 1st Baronet Sir James Shaw, 1st Baronet (26 August 1764 – 22 October 1843), became Lord Mayor of London in 1805. (Requires login or UK library card for access) From humble beginnings in a farming family in Ayrshire, he became a successful merchant and ...

(former Lord Mayor of London), Kilmarnock (1848) *Monument to William Motherwell, poet,

(erected 1851, sixteen years after his death) *Monument to John Henry Alexander,

(modelled 1852, completed posthumously by Alexander Handyside Ritchie ) *"Grief" an emotive stone figure on the grave of his father, James, in Woodside Cemetery, Paisley (modelled 1852 erected 1854) (erected posthumously and partly sculpted by

John Mossman John G. Mossman (London 1817–1890) was one of a number of English sculptors who dominated the production and teaching of sculpture in Glasgow for 50 years after his arrival with his father and brothers from his native London in 1828. His fa ...

) *Bust of Deacon Convener William McLean (1827-28), Trades Hall of Glasgow 85 Glassford Street, Glasgow

References

*Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain *Glasgow City of Sculpture {{DEFAULTSORT:Fillans, James 1808 births 1852 deaths People associated with Glasgow Scottish sculptors Scottish male sculptors 19th-century British sculptors