Engraving of Queen Victoria reading Bible to sick fisherman Wellcome L0072274

Gourlay Steell RSA (22 March 1819– 31 January 1894) was a 19th-century Scottish artist.

Life

Gourlay was born at 20 Calton Hill in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

on 22 March 1819 the son of John Steell, a wood-carver and Margaret Gourlay of Dundee. His elder brother

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

was a sculptor of national standing. He studied under William Allan and

Robert Scott Lauder Robert Scott Lauder (25 June 1803 – 21 April 1869) was a Scottish artist who described himself as a "historical painter". He was one of the original members of the Royal Scottish Academy. Life and work Lauder was born at Silvermills, Ed ...

. Aged only 13 he had his first piece displayed at the

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

, a model of a greyhound, and in 1835 he displayed a full-size sculpture of a bloodhound. From that year until death he exhibited almost continually. By the 1840s he had established himself and was living in a fine house at 33 East Claremont Street in Edinburgh's New Town. In 1872 he was appointed the official painter of animals to Queen Victoria, succeeding

Sir Edwin Landseer Sir Edwin Henry Landseer (7 March 1802 – 1 October 1873) was an English painter and sculptor, well known for his paintings of animals – particularly horses, dogs, and stags. His best-known work is the lion sculptures at the base of Nelso ...

. In 1882 he replaced Sir

William Fettes Douglas Sir William Fettes Douglas (1822–1891) was a Scottish painter and art connoisseur, rising to be President of the Royal Scottish Academy. Life He was born on 12 March 1822 at 26 Rankeillor Street in Edinburgh's South Side, the eldest son o ...

as Curator of the

National Gallery of Scotland The National (formerly the Scottish National Gallery) 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 William Henry Playfa ...

. At this time he was living with his family at 4 Palmerston Place in Edinburgh's West End. In 1882 he succeeded

as Principal Curator of the National Gallery of Scotland, serving until death, and eventually after an inter-regnum being replaced by

Robert Gibb Robert Gibb may refer to: *Robert Gibb (courtier) Robert Gibb or Gib (1490-1558) was a Scottish landowner and courtier. Life His home and lands were at Carribber Castle near Linlithgow in West Lothian. The estate was on the banks of the River Av ...

. He died on 31 January 1894 at 23 Minto Street,

and was buried in

Morningside Cemetery, Edinburgh Morningside Cemetery is a cemetery in south List of graveyards and cemeteries in Edinburgh, Edinburgh. It was established in 1878 by the Metropolitan Cemetery Company, originally just outwith the then city boundary, the nearest suburb then b ...

with his wife Jessie Anderson who had died in 1883. The exceptionally modest gravestone has fallen, and lies forlornly in the westmost section of the cemetery, adjacent to modern housing developments. His son, David George Steell ARSA followed in his footsteps and became an animal artist.

Works

see *

Greyfriars Bobby Greyfriars Bobby (4 May 1855 – 14 January 1872) was a Skye Terrier or Dandie Dinmont Terrier who became known in 19th-century Edinburgh for spending 14 years guarding the grave of his owner until his death on 14 January 1872. The story conti ...

(1889) purchased by

Patrick Dudgeon Patrick Dudgeon of Cargen FRSE DL (1817–1895) was a British landowner, mineralogist and meteorologist. He was co-founder with Matthew Forster Heddle of the Mineralogical Society in Great Britain in 1876. He had a specialist interest in min ...

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

*The Shooting Party, Royal Armouries Museum,

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

*Deerstalking on Jura,

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 ...

Museums *A Challenge,

Museums (two Highland cattle fighting) *The Trysting Place,

Museums (three dogs) *A Highland Parting,

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

Art Gallery and Museum (sheep and Highland cattle at a river) *John Hay Esq of Letham Grange, Angus Council *Old Pets of Haddo,

National Trust for Scotland The National Trust for Scotland () is a Scottish Building preservation and conservation trusts in the UK, conservation organisation. It is the largest membership organisation in Scotland and describes itself as "the charity that cares for, sha ...

(ponies)

References

* Dictionary of National Biography: Steell

External links

*http://www.avictorian.com/Steell_Gourlay.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Steell, Gourlay 1819 births 1894 deaths Scottish artists Royal Scottish Academicians artists from Edinburgh Alumni of the Edinburgh College of Art