JAMES MCINTOSH PATRICK R.S.A, R.O.I., A.R.E., L.L.D. (SCOTTISH 1907-1998)
BRAEMAR CASTLE, ROYAL DEESIDE
Signed, oil on board
80cm x 121cm (31.5in x 47.5in)
This painting is the original artwork for the London North Eastern Railway (LNER) and London Midland Scottish Railway (LMS) Royal Deeside poster of 1937, which was part of the celebrated ‘It’s quicker by rail’ publicity campaign. The idyllic scene, with Braemar Castle at its centre, was intended to attract people to travel to the area by train, whether along the east coast with LNER or along the west coast with LMS. An example of the resultant poster is in the collection of the National Railway Museum, York (acc.no.1978-8984). Such is the success of its design that it was given a full-page colour reproduction in Richard Furness’s book Poster to Poster: Railways Journeys in Art Volume I Scotland (JDF & Associates Ltd, Tirley, 2009, p. 80).McIntosh Patrick had a long and fruitful relationship with various railway companies and eventually the nationalised railway, from the 1930s until 1960. He encouraged people to catch a train to visit places including Crieff, Dunfermline, Dunnottar Castle, Edinburgh, Loch Leven, North Berwick, Pitlochry and St Andrews. (see Furness op.cit.)We are grateful to Andrew McLean of the National Railway Museum, York for his help with our research.