Key Information
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1933-1943 (Creation)
Level of description
Series
Extent
2.1 metres
Content and Structure
Scope and content
General correspondence, 1934-1943 including: letters to school governors and staff, 1933-1942; Empire Exhibition - committee minutes and papers, 1936-1939, Scottish Council for Art and Industry - committee minutes and papers, 1934-1939; National Register of Industrial Art Designers - committee minutes and papers, 1937-1941; correspondence with the Royal Society of Arts 1939. The papers that survive from Hutchison's time as director include the typed copy letters from the correspondence that he sent out. Many are related to school business, but there are also a sizeable number of letters of a more private nature. Notable correspondents include D.M. Sutherland, A.R. Sturrock, Nikolaus Pevsner, Muirhead Bone, Douglas Strachan, Tom Purvis, Sir John Richmond, Sir George Pirie and Randolph Schwabe, with many of the original incoming letters surviving in Hutchison's files and the files of the school secretary. These letters provide a vivid account of the Scottish art scene before the outbreak of the Second World War. The wartime letters themselves contain many personal letters of reference for students and staff, as well as accounts of military service from those in training and at the front. Notably, there are letters from Robert MacBryde describing his and Robert Colquhoun's experiences from 1939-1941. Letters from Muirhead Bone display his strong feelings about Scottish nationality and the role of artists during a war. There are also subject files relating to specific projects that Hutchison undertook, including the Empire Exhibition of 1938, organised by the Scottish Council for Development and held in Bellahouston Park, Glasgow. Hutchison was vice-chairman of the fine art committee and was in charge of selecting examples of Scottish printing for the actual exhibition. He suggested that students decorate the pavilions, and school staff and students, including David Donaldson and Bill Crosbie, were involved in the poster and sculptural competitions. He also arranged that exhibition space be made available for the four Scottish art schools. Another area of interest was the Council for Art and Industry, an agency set up by the Board of Trade. Its aim was to encourage good design and the Scottish committee of the council spread its sphere of influence widely, addressing education, training, industry, exhibitions and much else. Hutchison was appointed to the Scottish committee of the council in 1934 and was closely involved in its work until the outbreak of World War Two. The National Register of Industrial Art Designers was set up in London in 1937 at the suggestion of the Council for Art and Industry, and a representative from the Scottish central art institutions was sent every year to attend meetings. The principals of the four Scottish colleges took it in turn, and Hutchison attended in 1940-41. The papers of the previous three years were given to him by the other principals. There is also correspondence relating to the register in the school correspondence, and an account of its creation can be traced in the papers of the Council of Art and Industry. See also this blog post written about William Oliphant Hutchison: http://www.gsaarchives.net/2018/04/cataloguing-gsa-day-life-director-w-o-hutchison/
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 arranged into files and then arranged chronologically.
General Information
Name of creator
Biographical history
Sir William Oliphant Hutchison was born in Kirkcaldy 2 July 1889, and was educated at Kirkcaldy High School, Cargilfield, and later at Rugby School. He entered Edinburgh College of Art in 1909 where he studied until 1912, leaving to form the Edinburgh Group with Eric Robertson, A.R. Sturrock, G. Spence Smith, and D.M. Sutherland (later Principal of Gray's School of Art, Aberdeen). He studied in Paris, and worked primarily as a portrait painter although he also exhibited landscape and figure paintings. Hutchison served in the Royal Garrison Artillery during the First World War, in Malta and in France, where he was severely wounded. Shortly after his demobilization, late in 1918, he and his wife took a studio flat in York Place in Edinburgh. They remained there only until 1921, when they moved to London.
Hutchison practised as a portrait painter and had some measure of success. He exhibited regularly at the Royal Academy, joined the Savage Club, and had a wide circle of friends, mainly connected with the arts. He was appointed Director of Glasgow School of Art in 1933 and guided the School through the pre-war years, overseeing connections between the School and the Empire Exhibition of 1938 and the first four years of World War II. Although he had had no teaching experience, he made an excellent director. He painted very much in the academic tradition but was always ready to help and encourage students and young artists who aspired to the avant-garde. He maintained a keen interest in all staff and students, and those serving in the armed forces were sent cards and presents from the School.
Hutchison was a member of the Glasgow Art Club, the Royal Scottish Academy, the Royal Academy and the Royal Society of Portrait Painters. He retired from Glasgow School of Art in 1943 to continue with portrait painting in Edinburgh and London. In 1964 he held an exhibition of his work in London. Hutchison was a retiring and modest man but he had a good speaking voice and was in demand as a public speaker. He was also a great raconteur and his reminiscences of his early days in London were a never failing source of pleasure and amusement to his family and friends. He died suddenly at his home in London in February 1970.
Archival history
Custodial history
Physical Description and Conditions of Use
Conditions governing access
Directors' papers which are over 30 years old are available for public consultation. Permission from the director is needed for access to those less than 30 years old.