E A Hornel exhibition comes to Drum Castle

A prolific artist of the late 19th and early 20th century, Hornel is largely recognised as one of the Glasgow Boys, and well-known as a celebrated painter of landscapes, flowers, and people. His home in the artists’ town of Kirkcudbright, Broughton House, is filled with his work. However, you’ll find more than just paintings in Hornel’s extensive collection – there are also hundreds and hundreds of photographs.

The exhibition at Drum Castle, ‘A Painter Behind the Camera’ focuses on the many photographs Hornel took, commissioned and collected, to serve as ‘building blocks’ for his paintings. The photographs were taken in Scotland, as well as during trips to Japan (1893–4 and 1921), Sri Lanka (1907) and Myanmar (1921). They offer great insight into how Hornel created a library of motifs, poses, models and gestures to use in his work.

The exhibition has been curated by Marianne Fossaluzza – who is studying Hornel for her PhD at the University of Aberdeen, and is a research volunteer for the Trust – alongside Ben Reiss, the Morton Photography Project Curator. As Marianne describes, they ‘have carefully curated a stunning selection of photographs from Broughton House, putting them side by side to explore Hornel’s practice and his perception of – and working relationship with – his models.’