www.privateairny.com Private Air | Fall 2020
35
museum directors, gallery owners,
collectors, Flemings staff and
other friends of the collection.
Each wrote a few paragraphs to
explain their choice. Two of the
creators of the collection were
among them.
Robin Fleming selected Lochaber
No More by John Watson Nicol
(1856-1926), a title taken
from a pibroch, or pipe lament,
particularly associated with the
grim experience of so many
Scottish emigrants. He writes:
'e plight of the Highlanders
was a favored subject of Victorian
artists, whose depictions of
bailiffs seizing chattels in lieu of
rent, evictions and emigrations
found a ready audience in
England… e simplicity of
the composition and sketchy
suggestion of the west coast
of Scotland give the departing
couple and their dog a sense of
majesty and humility.'
Perhaps surprisingly, Bill Smith's
choice was not Sir David
Young Cameron, on whom he
has written an excellent book,
but James Pryde (1866-1941),
of whom, he says, had barely
heard before purchasing e
Unknown Corner in 1988. 'I
was immediately captivated by
this master of suggestion, his
subject matter at times romantic,
mysterious, claustrophobic,
moldering, sinister, menacing
and – not infrequently – all of
these. I acquired e Unknown
Corner for the Fleming collection
and bought a small oil study of
e Green Pool for myself. To this
day these paintings and their
enigmatic creator never fail to
move me.'
e Fleming-Wyfold Foundation
and the collection are very
much about drawing people
into a personal relationship with
the art. Although established
and supported by the family,
current activities are further
funded by grants, donations, and
sponsorship, including the Friends
and Corporate Friends.
www.flemingcollection.co.uk
OPPOSITE:
the gallery in Mayfair,
home to the Fleming collection
BELOW, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP:
Green Sea, Iona by S J Peploe, 1920
Ian Fleming
David Donald
THE COLLECTION
