Alexander Runciman (15 August 1736 – 4 October 1785) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

painter of historical and mythological subjects. He was the elder brother of John Runciman, also a painter.

Life

He was born in

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, and studied at the Foulis Academy,

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

. From 1750 to 1762 he was apprenticed to the landscape painter Robert Norie, later becoming a partner in the Norie family firm. He also worked as a stage painter for the Theatre Royal in Edinburgh. In 1767, with financial support from Robert Alexander of Edinburgh, Skinner, Basil (1966), ''Scots in Italy in the 18th Century'',

National Galleries of Scotland The National Galleries of Scotland (, sometimes also known as National Galleries Scotland) is the executive non-departmental public body that controls the three national galleries of Scotland and two partner galleries, forming one of the Nation ...

, p. 25 he went to Rome, where he spent five years. His brother John accompanied him, but died in

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

in the winter of 1768–69. During Runciman's stay in Italy he became acquainted with other artists such as James Barry,

Henry Fuseli Henry Fuseli ( ; ; 7 February 1741 – 17 April 1825) was a Swiss painter, draughtsman, and writer on art who spent much of his life in Britain. Many of his successful works depict supernatural experiences, such as '' The Nightmare''. He pr ...

and the sculptor Johan Tobias Sergel.Macmillan, Duncan (2023), ''Scotland and the Origins of Modern Art'', Lund Humphries, London, pp. 65 - 76, Runciman's earliest efforts had been in landscape; he now turned to historical and imaginative subjects, exhibiting his ''Nausicaa at Play with her Maidens'' in 1767 at the Free Society of British Artists, Edinburgh. On his return from Italy after a brief time in London, where in 1772 he exhibited in the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

, he settled in Edinburgh, and was appointed master of the Trustees' Academy. He was patronised by Sir James Clerk, decorating the hall of his Penicuik House with a series of subjects from

Ossian Ossian (; Irish Gaelic/Scottish Gaelic: ''Oisean'') is the narrator and purported author of a cycle of epic poems published by the Scottish poet James Macpherson, originally as ''Fingal'' (1761) and ''Temora (poem), Temora'' (1763), and later c ...

which took inspiration from

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's ''Iliad'' pictures, and an adjacent staircase with four scenes from the life of Saint Margaret. He also created various religious paintings and an altar-piece in the Cowgate Episcopal Church, Edinburgh, and easel pictures of ''Cymon and Iphigenia'', ''Sigismunda Weeping over the Heart of Tancre'', and ''Agrippina with the Ashes of Germanicus''. In 1773 he is listed as sharing a studio with a Mr McLarin at the foot of Old Assembly Close off the

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(facing what is now called the Cowgate). He was a member of the Edinburgh Cape Club. He enjoyed a strong reputation as a landscape painter in his lifetime. Runciman died in Edinburgh and is buried in Canongate Churchyard. The grave is unmarked but a stone plaque was erected by the RSA in 1866 on the west-facing wall of the church to his memory (also commemorating his brother John who died in Naples).

Known works

see *

Robert Fergusson Robert Fergusson (5 September 1750 – 17 October 1774) was a Scottish poet. After formal education at the University of St Andrews, Fergusson led a Bohemianism, bohemian life in Edinburgh, the city of his birth, then at the height of intel ...

East Lothian East Lothian (; ; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a Counties of Scotland, historic county, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921. In ...

Landscape *

Dunvegan Castle Dunvegan Castle (Caisteal Dhùn Bheagain) is located to the north of Dunvegan on the Isle of Skye, off the west coast of Scotland. It is the seat of the MacLeod of MacLeod, chief of the Clan MacLeod. Probably a fortified site from the earlie ...

*The Blind Ossian Singing *The Landing of St Margaret *Self portrait with John Brown *The Witches Showing MacBeth the Apparitions *Fingal Encounters Carbon Carglass *Agrippina with the Ashes of Germanicus *Hubert and Arthur *Agrippina Landing at Brundisium *A View near Perth *Italian River Landscape with a Hermit *David Steuart Erskine *Temple of the Sibyl at Tipoli *Murals in the east apse in St Patrick's Church South Gray's Close, Edinburg
St Patrick's, Cowgate, Edinburgh

References

*Duncan Macmillan, "Runciman, Alexander (1736–1785)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 25 June 2007
*

Life

Known works

References

Further reading