Poet and painter, William Bell Scott was the elder brother and champion of the visionary painter and printmaker David Scott. The brothers trained at the Trustees' Academy in Edinburgh and worked for their father, an engraver, before launching their own careers as painters. William was an associate of the Pre-Raphaelites and his detailed and highly coloured paintings of historical, religious and contemporary themes reflect the ideas and concerns he shared with the Pre-Raphaelites, in particular, Dante Gabriel Rossetti. In 1843 he was appointed Master of the Government School of Design in Newcastle. Scott painted his famous murals, including 'Iron and Coal', a scene of contemporary industrial life, in Wallington Hall.