Dr John Boyd Baxter
Unknown Sculptor

It was Boyd Baxter (1796-1882) who first proposed a college in Dundee in 1873, at a time when St Andrews University had only 130 students. Although Mary Ann Baxter provided most of the money, it was Boyd Baxter who did much of the work in setting up the institution, and both signed the foundation deed in December 1881.

Thomas Huxley
by John Collier & Leopold Flameng, 1883

Collier (1850-1934) was Huxley's son-in-law, and became well-known for his portraits of Victorian high society. His celebrated painting of Huxley (now in the National Portrait Gallery) was copied for sale by the French engraver Leopold Flameng (1833-1911). Huxley signed each print personally.

Thomas Henry Huxley (1825-95) has been described as a Scientist, Humanist and Educator. He has been accredited with transforming both Oxford and Cambridge Universities. He was also Rector of Aberdeen University. As a member of the Royal Commission on Universities in Scotland, he suggested Dundee as a potential site for the expansion of science-based subjects, and it was with his help that this became a reality.

James Duncan of Jordanstone
by Sir George Reid, c.1890

Born in Aberdeen, Reid (1841-1913) studied in Edinburgh and became influenced by the Dutch style of painting after a trip to Holland. He established a considerable reputation as a portrait painter, and was elected President of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1891.

In 1909 James Duncan of Jordanstone bequeathed £60,000 towards founding an independent art school in Dundee. At that time art was taught within the joint Dundee Technical Institute & School of Art, and complications arising from this meant that it was not until the 1930s that plans were finalised for a new College on Perth Road. The war then caused further delays and Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art was officially opened in 1953.

Prof John Edward Aloysius Steggall
by Stewart Carmichael, 1903

Educated at Dundee High School, Carmichael (1867-1950) studied art in France and Belgium, and established a reputation by producing decorative murals for public buildings in the city. He was initially inspired by the Dundee-based Celtic revivalists Duncan and Davidson, but later reverted to a more conservative style.

J E A Steggall (1855-1935) was appointed Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy (ie Physics) at University College Dundee in 1883 (after an unsuccessful attempt to become Principal). When a separate Chair of Physics was created in 1895, Steggall remained Professor of Mathematics until his retirement in 1933.

Sir James Alfred Ewing
by Henry J Lintott, 1929

Born in Brighton, Lintott (1877-1965) became a leading member of staff at Edinburgh College of Art. This painting is a smaller version of a portrait by the same artist belonging to the University of Edinburgh.

J A Ewing (1895-1935) was educated at Dundee High and was the first Professor of Engineering and Drawing at University College Dundee. He moved to Cambridge in 1890 and was Principal of Edinburgh University 1916-1929.

Alex Russell
by James McIntosh Patrick, 1930

Arguably Dundee's most famous painter, McIntosh Patrick (1907-1998) studied at Glasgow and began his career making etchings. In the 1930s he turned to painting, and became highly popular for his detailed and meticulous landscapes. He taught part-time at the Art College 1927-1960.

In 1930, Alex Russell was appointed as the first Head of Design at the Art College. He specialised in lettering and stained glass, and taught at the College until 1960.

Sir Garnet Wilson
by Rodrigo Moynihan, c.1946

Born in the Canary Islands, Moynihan (1910-1991) studied in New York, Rome and London. He was Professor of Painting at the Royal College of Art (1948-57), and became well-known for his portraits.

Garnet Wilson (1885-1975) became a Dundee City Councillor in 1929 and Lord Provost in 1940. He became a member of the UCD Council in 1940, and its President in 1946. He remained on the Council when the University was re-organised as Queen's College in 1953-4, and kept his position for a further 14 years.

Sir D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson
by David S Ewart, 1950

David Ewart (1901-1965) was born and studied in Glasgow. He was primarily a portrait painter, and after the Second World War he did much work in America. This work is a copy by the artist of a portrait painted for St Andrews University in 1938.

D'Arcy Thompson (1860-1948) is arguably Dundee's most celebrated academic. Educated at Edinburgh and Cambridge, he was the first Professor of Natural History at University College Dundee. He built up a zoology collection (much of which is now under the care of Museum Services) that formed the basis of his seminal textbook On Growth & Form. In 1917 he moved to the University of St Andrews where he remained until his death.

John Gray
by Ian Fleming, 1950

Ian Fleming (1906-1994) was born and studied in Glasgow, where he taught from 1931 to 1948. He became well known for his etchings, but also created striking oils and watercolours. He taught at Hospitalfield, Arbroath from 1948 until 1954 when he became Principal of Gray's School of Art in Aberdeen.

Born locally, Gray taught at Grove Academy in Broughty Ferry and was on the Board of Governors at the Art College. As a painter he was best known for watercolours of flowers and coastal scenes.

James Lamb
by Ian G M Eadie, 1950

Ian Eadie (1913-73) was born in Dundee and studied at the Art College, where he returned as an instructor in 1939. As well as portraits and landscapes, he also created murals in many public buildings throughout Britain. You can see more of his work on display in the Continuing Education department on the ground floor.

A former student of University College Dundee, James Charles Lamb (1894-1962) was a member of the UCD Council from 1947 to 1951, a period of great upheaval. In 1960 he gave a bequest which started the University's Fine Art Fund. This exhibition space is named the Lamb Gallery in his honour.

Ustinov Composition
by Enzo Plazzotta, 1968

Plazzotta (1921-1981) was one of the most internationally successful sculptors of the last century. Born in Italy, he moved to Britain after the war. This sculpture is one of a limited edition of nine casts of the original work owned by the Plazzotta company, who continue to sell his work.

Peter Ustinov (b.1921), the much-loved actor, writer and humorist, was Rector of the University 1968-74.

Sir Ian G W Hill
by Alberto Morrocco, 1969

Born in Aberdeen of Italian parents, Morrocco (1917-1998) studied and later taught at Gray's School of Art in Aberdeen. He was Head of Painting at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art 1950-1982. The University owns several other portraits by him, including the Queen Mother, now on display in Bonar Hall.

Sir Ian George Wilson Hill was educated in Edinburgh and Vienna, and was Professor of Medicine at Dundee 1950-1970. During that time he was also made Honorary Physician to the Queen in Scotland and President of the Royal College of Physicians in Edinburgh. This painting normally hangs in the Medical School Library at Ninewells.