Robin Philipson

Blue Totem - Scottish exhibited 1960's Abstract art

1963

Sir Robert (Robin) James Philipson RA PPRSA FRSE RSW (Robin Philipson) was a seminal figure in the history of 20th-century Scottish painting. His influence was tangible on his peers and students alike, both through the dissemination of his very individual style and the encouragement he gave his many pupils. Philipson studied at Edinburgh College of Art from 1936 to 1940 and joined the staff in 1947. During the Second World War, he served in India and Burma with the King's Own Scottish Borderers. His early subjects were mainly landscapes, still lifes and interiors, which showed a debt to Oskar Kokoshka whose work Philipson had studied in depth. He was also close to Sir William George Gillies and John Maxwell, who were co-members of a group known as the Edinburgh School, which also included Anne Redpath and William MacTaggart. In the 1950s, Philipson was influenced by American Abstract Expressionism. It was at this time that he worked on his famous cockfighting series. He had his first solo show at Aitken Dott & Son (The Scottish Gallery) in 1954. Like many Scottish artists of his generation, Philipson was well-known for his bold colors, heavy impasto and his free use of paint, yet, he always retained a precise figurative element within his work. In 1960, Philipson visited Amiens Cathedral in Northern France. Gothic architecture, combined with stained-glass windows, provided the source for a number of paintings of church interiors and crucifixions during this period. Philipson was a hugely popular figure within the Scottish and English art worlds and was elected an Honorary Royal Academician. His work has featured in several important and influential shows, including "Seven Scottish Painters” at the IBM Gallery of Art and Science in New York. He was knighted for his services to the arts in Scotland. Philipson was President of the Royal Scottish Academy from 1973 to 1983.