John Maclauchlan Milne RSA (1885–1957) was a Scottish painter much associated with the Dundee artistic community of the early 20th Century, but who also spent much time abroad particularly in the South of France. He was essentially a landscape painter, although urban paintings often occur. His works are found in many public art galleries, especially in Scotland.
Life
Maclauchlan Milne was born in
Buckhaven
Buckhaven is a town on the east coast of Fife, Scotland, on the Firth of Forth between East Wemyss and Methil. Buckhaven is on the Fife Coastal Path, and near to Wemyss Caves and Largo Bay.
History
The name Buckhaven is probably from the S ...
in Fife and had a peripatetic childhood, his family moving a number of times. His father, Joseph Milne was also a landscape painter. The family first lived in Edinburgh, where he went to school, then Maclauchlan Milne emigrated to Canada before rejoining his family in London before returning to Scotland and Dundee in 1908/09. He married his French wife in 1911 and thereafter travelled considerably while maintaining a studio in Dundee at 132A
Nethergate, Dundee, for some twenty years. The patronage of Alex Keiller of the Dundee marmalade firm give him financial support, enabling him in the 1920s to spend much time in the South of France. He settled in
Arran in the early 1940s, dying there in 1957.
Art
Maclauchlan Milne was initially much influence by his Father,
Joseph (Joe) Milne (d.1911) and his uncle
William Watt Milne (d. 1949) who were both professional artists. This can be seen in his painting ''Fife Landscape'', which is very much in the manner of his father. However, a visit to Paris in 1920 changed his outlook and style. After seeing the works of Cézanne he embraced the Modernist and a somewhat Impressionistic style of painting and thereafter worked in that manner. He adopted a far bolder colour palette, very much in tune with the French artists he observed.
He was also in direct contact with
Peploe,
Fergusson,
Cadell and
Hunter
Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...
, the ‘
Scottish Colourists
The Scottish Colourists were a group of four painters, three from Edinburgh, whose Post-Impressionism, Post-Impressionist work, though not universally recognised initially, came to have a formative influence on contemporary Scottish art and cultur ...
’, including exhibiting with them in Dundee in 1924, and no doubt took some inspiration from them. He also painted in
Iona
Iona (; , sometimes simply ''Ì'') is an island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there are other buildings on the island. Iona Abbey was a centre of Gaeli ...
which he would have associated with the works of Cadell and Peploe, although he may have only visited the island several times in the late 1930s. He continued to paint on
Arran, his Scottish paintings often showing a brightness of colour not always associated with the Scottish landscape.
Legacy
Milne seems to have been greatly appreciated in his day. The Dundee collector, Matthew Justice for example had his sitting room hung exclusively with paintings by Milne and Peploe. Several other important Dundee collectors owned his works. He has often been compared to the four Scottish Colourists, but has never achieved the level of recognition accorded to those artists. Professionally, he was recognised by being elected an Associate of the RSA in 1934 and a full RSA in 1938.
Further reading
For a full account of his life including illustrations and a timeline of his activities, see Millar.
External links
ArtUK John Maclauchlan Milne 1885–1957 British 40 works
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Milne, John Maclauchlan
Scottish artists
1885 births
1957 deaths