* HERBERT WHONE (BRITISH 1925 - 2011),
GLASGOW TRAM (The Johnny Beattie picture)
oil on canvas, signed and dated '62
image size 57cm x 40.5cm, overall size 66cm x 50.5cm
Framed.
Provenance: The Estate of the late Johnny Beattie MBE (9th November 1926 - 9th July 2020).
Note: Herbert Whone was born in Bingley, West Yorkshire, where his parents were both employed in the cloth mills. He was encouraged by his mother to ''improve'' himself culturally, and from an early age took photographs and practised the violin. After education at the Royal Manchester College of Music (now the Royal Northern College of Music) and Manchester University, he secured positions in the Royal Opera House Orchestra and the BBC Symphony Orchestra, before moving to Glasgow in 1955, where he took up the position of deputy leader of the Scottish National Orchestra. He was inspired by Glasgow's changing fortunes and painted a series of notable canvases featuring the beauty of a city and surrounding areas in transition. His paintings of trams and shipbuilding on and around the Clyde, to pick two of his fondest subjects, were presented with warmth and beauty, almost impressionistic in their depiction of glowing sunsets and use of rich colour. Herbert Whone (often incorrectly catalogued as Herbert Bannister Whone, his father's name) continued to paint long after his departure from Glasgow in 1964 and made several trips back to Scotland to paint. but It's the relatively small body of work produced in and around the city that stand testament to his exceptional talent. Whone's paintings, while highly collected and critically acclaimed, are still to attain the full recognition and commercial value they deserve and will surely eventually achieve. Known collectors of Herbert Whone's paintings included Joan Eardley, Margot Sandeman, Cyril Gerber, Johnny Beattie and Magnus Magnusson. Growing collector interest in Herbert Whone has seen his auction record price being beaten on an almost annual basis in recent years and his current "high" is £11,000 (hammer). This is even more impressive as auction appearances of his Glasgow paintings are becoming ever rarer. Public collections include: Glasgow Museums & Galleries, The Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, The Hepworth, Kirklees Museums & Galleries, Salford Museums & Galleries and The Mercer Gallery (Harrogate). A copy of "Hertbert Whone, Glasgow - In Transition" (a 112 page illustrated hardback book) accompanies this lot. Johnny Beattie and his wife are shown in the book, holding their painting in a newspaper clip. Johnny Beattie MBE enjoyed a career spanning more than 60 years and appeared on shows including Scotch & Wry, Rab C. Nesbitt before later starring in the BBC Scotland soap opera River City. He was one of the pillars of Scottish entertainment. Beattie, along with fellow Glaswegians Rikki Fulton, Jack Milroy, Jimmy Logan and Stanley Baxter were the blueprint of post war Scottish comedy. What set them apart was their ability to turn their hand to almost anything. In his incredible 63-year career Johnny was a stand-up, film and TV actor, presenter, panto dame, TV soap star and even rapper. In The Scottish Contemporary Art Auction of 24th January 2021, lot 23 "Factories in the Snow" by Herbert Whone sold for £8000 (hammer).