International studio (50.1913)

Patrick VP. Adam, R.S.A.

A PAINTER OF INTERIORS :
PATRICK W. ADAM, R.S.A.
.BY A. STODART WALKER.

Herdman, A.R.S.A. Other portraits followed, such
as Sisters and Alice in Wonderland—the latter a
portrait of the artist’s niece. Along with portraits
Mr. Adam achieved success with a number of

Distinguished in an individual expression that
finds no exact analogy in modern art, Mr. J. H.
Lorimer’s encouragement has had a very certain
influence on those craftsmen of to-day who have
gained distinction as painters of interiors. Mr.
William Orpen’s more virile work in this direction
can be traced through Mr. William Rothenstein
back to Mr. Lorimer, and in the paintings of his
friend and fellow countryman, Mr. Patrick W. Adam,
we can go further and trace a parentage not only of
idea but also of method. But Mr. Adam in his
best work need fear no comparison with his con-
federate. The brushwork, if not so suave and
delicate is often more spon¬
taneous and decorative and

figure subjects, simple genre motives, in the category
of Mr. Lorimer’s work. In 1889 he painted a
series of pictures in Venice, the most notable being
The Ducal Palace, selected by the late Sir George
Reid for the Aberdeen Gallery.
Mr. Adam’s early work has an interest of its own,
but is most worthy of study as a comparison with
the work for which he is now famed.
No other artist of the present day has two periods
more definitely marked, and it is a noteworthy fact
that an artist should, after the age of fifty, suddenly
strike out a new line and achieve a distinction
which diminishes the significance of his earlier

approaches more to the daring
freedom and expressiveness of
the Frenchman M. Blanche.
Born in 1854, the son of an
Edinburgh lawyer, Mr. Patrick
W. Adam began his art career
as a student of the Royal
Scottish Academy under the
distinguished masters George
Paul Chalmers and William
McTaggart, and while a student
was awarded the Maclaine-
Watters Medal for the best
painting from the life. He was
elected an Associate of the
Academy in 1883, succeeding
to full membership in 1897.
From the beginning of his career
as a painter he was fortunate
enough to secure recognition
from the directors of public
galleries, and examples of his
work are to be found in many
permanent collections, and he
has been honoured latterly by
the Scottish Modern Arts Asso-
ciation in the purchase of his
well-known Signet Library,
Edinburgh.
Mr. Adam’s first notable
success was the portrait of a
girl entitled Youth—a canvas
frequently exhibited throughout
the country and now in the
possession of Mr. Duddingstone
L. No. 199.—September 1913


“CARMICHAEL: INTERIOR” BY PATRICK W. ADAM, R.S.A.
( Owned by James Hood, Esq., Lasswade)
169