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Riddel, James, ARSA

1857 – 1928

RSA Annual report 1928, Notice XII; "The Council regret to record the deaths of two Honorary Members, two Academicians, and one Associate.......JAMES RIDDEL, ARSA, RSW. Mr James Riddel, who died at his residence, Balvonie, Balerno, Midlothian, on the 17th March 1928, in his seventieth year, was elected an Assocaite in 1919. Mainly known as a sympathetic painter of landscape in oil, his art was much influenced by the late Sir J lawton Wingate PRSA, an intimate personal friend. He was born in Glasgow in 1857. As in the case of many othe rpainters, business occpied the early years after leaving school, and all through his life the lessons then learned were not forgotten. Mr riddel studied att he Glasgow School of Art, and late rin Edinburgh. Possessing remarkable teaching and administrative abilities, success attedned his headmastership of the Art Section of the heriot-Watt College, when he came into intimate contact with the younger generation. Both before and after election as an Assocaite of the Academy he was a constant exhibitor. 'Moonlight,' one of his last pictures, evinced no diminution in the qualities which always distinguished his Art. In later years his painting showed a wider sympathy with new developments in landscape painting, but retained the simple personal attitutde which marked his work from the beginning. Mr Riddel's membership of the Society of Scottish Artists, and the Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Water Colours, indicate the breadth of his interests. For many y ears he acted as treasurer of the last-mentioned Society with great acceptance. He also rendered valuable services to the Scottish Artists' Benevolent Association, being Honorary Treasurer att he time of his death." Newspaper Cuttings Book 1924-1928, p116; [?] The Scotsman 16 March 1928; "SCOTTISH ARTIST'S DEATH/ THE LATE MR JAMES RIDDEL/ ARSA/ Regret will be felt in art circles, both in Edinburgh and in the West, att he news of the death of mr james Riddel, which took place on Wednesday night at his residence at Balerno after only three days' illness. Mr Riddel had an attack of pneumonia from which he never rallied. Mr Riddel was eelcted an Asscoiate of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1919. He was then one of the senior landscape painters of Scotland, and for many years his pictures were well-known to frequensters of the Scottish exhibitions. He was born in Glasgow in 1857, and was educated at Wellington Academy, Glasgow, and glasgow University. He was in business for some time, but at an early age decided to make art his life's vocation. He studied at the Glasgow School of Art, where Lavery and George Henry were amongst his fellow-students. Later he came to Edinburgh, and pursued his art studies at the Edinburgh Royal Institution and the Royal Scottish Academy Life School. For twenty years he was headmaster of the Art Department of the Heriot-Watt College, Edinmburgh. The Art Department was of modest dimensions at the beginning of that period, but it gradually developed until it formed an important section of the College activities. During these years Mr Riddel was an undustrious practitioner as well as a teacher. He exhibited landscapes and portraitrs regularly in the Royal Scottish Academy, the Royal Glasgow Institute, and the Royal Academy at London, and in the Liverpool, Manchester, and other exhibitions in England. He was elected Chairman of the Society of Scottish Artists in 1904, and he was a member of the RSW. Inspiration for his landscape work was found chiefly in Scotland and Belgium, and he also painted in Canada. he was the author of a 'Handbook on Ptractical Plance and Solid Geometry,' and wrote on the teaching of watercolour painting and drawing, an article on this subject being contributed to the Teachers' Encyclopaedia. A number of Mr Riddel's recent works showed his sensitiveness to subtle lighting effects, and his capacity for rendering with truthfulness and convincing effect phases of nature which had caught his interest and sympathy. He was a member of the Scottish Arts Club, and recently was nominated for the position of President. Mr Riddel, in addition to other work, did a large amount of colour work for reproduction as book illustrations, and the water-colour drawings reproduced in a number of standard works on Edinburgh are by him." op. cit. [unidentified paper] repeats much of the foregoing but addes "Mr Riddel was a keen golfer, and belonged to Baberton Club." He first exhibited with the RGIFA in 1882 at which point he was Art Master at Forfar Academy.



An image from the RSA collection.