James McBey
About this artwork
This dramatic portrait shows the printmaker James McBey. Despite a poverty-stricken childhood in the north of Scotland, McBey embarked on an artistic career which made him internationally successful. Almost entirely self-taught as an artist, his work helped to revive the practice of etching in Britain during the early Twentieth Century. Adventurous by nature, McBey travelled widely in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Central and North America. He worked as a war artist in France and Egypt during the First World War. Lumsden’s portrait suggests something of the sitter’s strong personality. He has captured McBey’s striking features and intense gaze, depicting him in the process of working.
Updated before 2020
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artist:Ernest Stephen LumsdenScottish (1883 - 1948)
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title:James McBey
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date created:1920
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materials:Etching on paper (49/50)
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measurements:25.20 x 29.30 cm (paper 29.20 x 34.80 cm)
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object type:
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credit line:Bequeathed by Mr Kenneth Sanderson 1943
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accession number:GMA 407
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gallery:
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depicted:
Ernest Stephen Lumsden
Ernest Stephen Lumsden
Lumsden taught printmaking at Edinburgh College of Art. He wrote the standard manual on etching practice, ‘The Art of Etching’ in 1925, and became President of the Society of Artist Printmakers (initially based in Glasgow, then based in Edinburgh) from 1929. Born in London, Lumsden initially intended to pursue a naval career, but this was curtailed due to poor health, which continued to plague him throughout his life. He travelled widely in Europe, Asia and North America and specialised in depicting topographic views, particularly of architectural scenes. He also worked as a portrait painter when the market for etchings collapsed in the 1920s. Lumsden was married to Mabel Royds, an artist and colleague at Edinburgh College of Art.
