Key Information
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- c1909-1996 (Creation)
Level of description
Collection
Extent
17 Cubic Feet
Content and Structure
Scope and content
A collection of Kath Whyte's personal papers which comprises:
- Family papers, press cuttings and photographs, c1909-1981
- School certificates, c1922
- Correspondence, 1927-1996
- Early sketches and drawings, 1920s
- ketchbooks, notebooks, photographs and correspondence from Gray's School of Art, c1922-1947
- Personal correspondence, 1922-1996
- National Identification Card, 1943
- Travel diary, c1940s
- Lecture notes, sketchbooks and notebooks, 1948-1974
- Assorted textile samples, sketch books and notebooks, 1950s-1970s
- Examples of weaving by Kath Whyte and her pupils, c1950s-1970s
- Diaries 1974-1988 and miscellaneous books owned by Kath Whyte
- Photographs (professional and personal), 1909-1996
- MBE medal and associated correspondence and photograph
- Extensive collection of undated slides
- Exhibition catalogues
- Textile and design pieces, c1930s-1970s
This material may contain sensitive information about individuals that is protected by the Data Protection Act. Until this material has been checked for sensitive information, it will not be available for researchers. Once this Data Protection work is complete the collection will be open for access, however any sensitive information will be closed and inaccessible for 75 years from the date of creation.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
This material has been appraised in line with Glasgow School of Art Archives and Collections standard procedures.
Accruals
System of arrangement
The material is sorted into 7 areas:
1: Papers and photographs relating to Kath Whyte's family, her time at school and in India (1909-1927)
2: Papers and photographs relating to Kath Whyte's time at Gray's School of Art Aberdeen and her early teaching career (1927-1948)
3: Papers and photographs relating to Kath Whyte's time at Glasgow School of Art (1948-1974)
4: Papers and Photographs relating to Kath Whyte's Eaglesham activities (1956-1995)
5: Papers and photographs relating to Kath Whyte's personal life (1909-1996)
6.Papers and photographs relating to Kath Whyte's embroidery work
- Kath Whyte's collection of textiles and design work
General Information
Name of creator
Biographical history
Helen Kathleen R Whyte, or Kath Whyte as she was known, was the outstanding influence of her generation on embroidery in Scotland and, through her writing and teaching, made a major contribution to textile art in Britain and abroad.
She was brought up in a home where "real" things - hand-made textiles, books, pictures - were loved and appreciated. Some of her formative years were spent in India, where her father worked, from where the rich colours and exciting textiles obviously made a lasting impression. After attending Arbroath High School, Arbroath, Angus, Scotland, where the strength of design teaching in the art department developed her sense of direction, she went on to Gray's School of Art, Aberdeen, Scotland, where she took the Diploma Course in General Design. Two strong influences during that period of her life were James Hamilton, a colourful character and strong design teacher, and Dorothy Angus, who awakened in Kath her true dedication to stichery and textiles. After leaving art college she taught in schools in Aberdeen and organised craft classes for youth clubs during and after the war. Her influence on textile design really developed after she took up her post as Head of Embroidery and Weaving at Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, Scotland, in 1948, a position she held until she retired in 1974. She became part of the team of design lecturers there, earning great respect from her colleagues for her passionate and single-minded enthusiasm. She was also active in other forms of art education. She was part of a team appointed to validate the DipAD course in English art colleges. She was a much respected adviser on many of the English courses and continued her interest in them through the years as a friend. She was also an art advisor to the Scottish Education Department, so her influence carried on through to secondary school education. Kathleen Whyte was awarded the MBE in 1969 for her contribution to art education. Also, in 1969, her book, Design and Embroidery was published by Batsford and was also produced in the US and Holland with a second edition in 1982. In the introduction to the catalogue for her Retrospective Exhibition in 1987, William Buchanan said: "She is one of a great line of embroiderers at Glasgow who have practised and taught and written and proved that, along with the brush, the pencil and the chisel, used by the finger of an artist, the needle is a potent means of visual expression."
Name of creator
Name of creator
Name of creator
Name of creator
Biographical history
Robert Stewart was one of the foremost British designers of the second half of the twentieth century. His work revolutionized design in postwar Britain. Trained at the Glasgow School of Art in the 1940s. He took charge of the printed textiles department there in 1949. He was passionately interested in surface design and became one of the most significant influences in the field. He designed for Liberty, Donald Brothers, and the Edinburgh Tapestry Company in Great Britain and North America before forming his own company to produce printed ceramic kitchenware. During the 1970s and 1980s he designed and manufactured large-scale ceramic murals for public buildings. During his thirty-five years at the Glasgow School of Art, Stewart proved to be an inspiring and influential teacher. His legacy is to be found in his many successful former students now working in a variety of fields, including textiles and theatre design.
Name of creator
Biographical history
Crissie White studied Embroidery and Weaving at The Glasgow School of Art between 1956-1960. She became Senior Lecturer in charge: Design (Embroidery and weaving) in 1974.
Name of creator
Archival history
Custodial history
Previously held by Kath Whyte. Some material donated by Crissie White.
Physical Description and Conditions of Use
Conditions governing access
Glasgow School of Art Archives and Collections are open for research by appointment. For further details, please refer to our Access Policy @ https://gsaarchives.net/policies
Conditions governing reproduction
Application for permission to reproduce should be submitted to The Archives and Collections at The Glasgow School of Art.
Reproduction subject to usual conditions: educational use and condition of material.
For further details, please refer to our Reprographic Service Guide @ https://gsaarchives.net/policies
Language of material
- English
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical Description
There are no physical characteristics that affect the use of this material
Finding aids
Related Material
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
No known copies.
Related materials
Notes area
Alternative identifier(s)
Keywords/Tags
Place access points
People and Organisations
- Gray's School of Art (Subject)
- The Glasgow School of Art (Subject)
Genre access points
Status
Level of detail
Processing information
- Revised by David Powell, Hub Project Archivist, 14 May 2002
- 08 June 2005 Catalogue record converted to EAD2002, May 2005.
- Additional cataloguing undertaken by Kim Sommerville, Archives Assistant, c.2009-2010
- Archives Hub description updated by Carrie Skinner, Logjam Project Officer, September 2011
- Catalogue imported into Archon software and edited by Michelle Kaye, Archon Project Officer, May 2014.
- Catalogue exported from Archon and imported into AtoM during system migration, 2018-2019.
Language(s)
- English
Script(s)
Sources
Archivist's note
Finding Aid Authors: The Glasgow School of Art Archives and Collections.
Archivist's note
© Copyright 2014 GSA Archives. All rights reserved.