Art and Heritage Online Database

Collection: Gray's School of Art Collection
Object Type: Painting
Artist/Maker: Littlejohn, William
Media/Materials: oil on canvas
Dimensions: overall: 80.8 cm x 85.7 cm

William Hunter Littlejohn was born in Arbroath, Scotland, in 1929. He studied at Dundee School of Art from 1946 to 1950, and later joined the teaching staff as a lecturer and Head of Painting. In 1972, he was appointed Head of Fine Art, retiring in 1991. Works by Littlejohn are held in many collections, including The Royal Collection; but his greatest legacy is perhaps the inspiration given to young studentsin the subtle use of colur and tone placed in beautifully balanced compositions.

The juxtaposition of compositional content was a regular tool employed in his paintings. Fish often feature in his work, as does light and the North Sea. In later years, thanks to a Gillies RSA scholarship received in 1984, Littlejohn travelled to Japan to research its artistic iconography. On his return, he started to use gold-leaf and Japanese printing techniques such as 'tarashikomi' (wet on wet) and 'suiboku' (painting in ink)
Object Number: ABDRG2008.26