Allan Ramsay: Portraits of the Enlightenment
13 September 2013 - 5 January 2014
Hunterian Art Gallery
Admission charge - £6.50 / £4.50 concession
This exhibition marks 300 years since the birth of Allan Ramsay (1713 - 1784), whose elegant style set him apart from other portraitists of the time. Born in Edinburgh, his career took him from a small Scottish clientele to the Hanoverian court of King George III. Away from his studio, Ramsay was in close contact with a number of influential figures, and his published writing includes works on taste, politics and archaeology. The exhibition centres on a selection of portraits from across Ramsay’s 30 years as a painter and also features drawings, watercolours, books, pamphlets, and other materials which demonstrate Ramsay’s fascinating place in the intellectual and cultural life of Edinburgh, London, Paris and Rome in the mid 18th century.
The exhibition includes key loans from UK public and private collections and new research examining the intellectual context in which Ramsay painted a number of his most important portraits, including that of Hunterian founder Dr William Hunter.
A full programme of events accompanies this exhibition
To coincide with this exhibition, the Scottish National Gallery in Edinburgh is showcasing a selection of works from its unrivalled holding of drawings by Allan Ramsay
Allan Ramsay at 300 (19 October 2013 - 9 February 2014)
Image: Flora MacDonald by Allan Ramsay © Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford
Scottish Gold
Coming in 2014
Hunterian Art Gallery
Admission charge
This major new exhibition features a spectacular array of Scottish gold items from the Bronze Age to the present. Focussing on the occurrence of gold in Scotland and Scottish gold mining, Scottish Gold offers a unique opportunity to learn about the precious metal as part of the natural history of Scotland and its historical uses. Featuring a large selection of the finest Scottish gold specimens and objects made and used in Scotland, the exhibition brings together items from The Hunterian collection and other museums and collections across the UK. For the first time, several of the largest known Scottish gold nuggets will be displayed together and the surviving gold torcs from the large hoard found at Law Farm, Moray, in 1857 will be reunited. Other key objects include a gold chain and badge of Order of the Thistle, Scottish gold coinage and medals, and superb racing cups.