John Houston (painter)
Scottish painter (1930–2008)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Houston, OBE, RSA (1 April 1930 – 27 September 2008) was a Scottish painter.
John Houston | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1 April 1930 Buckhaven, Scotland |
| Died | 27 September 2008 (aged 78) Edinburgh |
| Alma mater | Edinburgh College of Art |
| Awards | Guthrie Award, 1960 (joint winner) |
Houston was born in Buckhaven, Fife, raised in nearby Windygates, and educated at Buckhaven High School and Edinburgh College of Art. An early career as a semi-professional footballer with Dundee United was ended by a knee injury in 1951.[1][2]
Houston taught at Edinburgh College of Art between 1955 and 1989.[3][4] In the late 1950s he co-founded and exhibited at the 57 Gallery, one of the first artist-run spaces in Edinburgh.[2] He painted landscapes in an expressionist style and was noted for his still life (flower and vase) subjects . His works are on display at many Scottish art galleries.[5] He was elected to the Royal Scottish Academy in 1972 and was accorded a retrospective at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art in 2005.[4][2]
Houston received an Honorary Doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 2004 [6]
Personal life
He was married to the painter Dame Elizabeth Blackadder until his death.[1] The couple lived in Queen's Crescent, Newington, and on Fountainhall Road, Edinburgh.[7]
