Museum PR Announcements News and Information

Scottish National Portrait Gallery acquires early portrait of Scottish folk musician Patie

The Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh has acquired an early portrait of the celebrated eighteenth-century fiddler Patie (or Peter) Birnie.

Scot William Aikman Patie Birnie, the Fiddler of Kinghorn (d. in or before 1721) by William Aikman (1682-1731). Oil on canvas, 76.20 x 63.50 cm. Scottish National Portrait Gallery.
Scot William Aikman Patie Birnie, the Fiddler of Kinghorn (d. in or before 1721) by William Aikman (1682-1731). Oil on canvas, 76.20 x 63.50 cm. Scottish National Portrait Gallery.
This portrait by the Scot William Aikman (1682-1731), who portrayed many of the leading political and literary figures of his day, was probably painted in the period between 1715 and 1720.

A memorable and welcome addition to the Gallery’s collection, it is a significant example of a portrait by a prominent Scottish artist in which the sitter, who is clearly identified, comes from the lower ranks of society, rather than the ruling élite. It complements other renowned portraits of musicians in the collection, such Sir Henry Raeburn’s portrayal of the fiddler Niel Gow, painted in 1787, and also provides a compelling contrast with the Gallery’s other portraits by Aikman, which are primarily of aristocratic subjects.

In the striking and unusual composition the famous musician is shown laughing, and is identified not only by the fiddle he holds, but also by a painted inscription which describes him as ‘The Facetious Peter Birnie / Fidler in Kinghorn’. Although the word ‘facetious’ is generally used in a derogatory sense today, in the eighteenth century it meant ‘gay; chearful [sic]; lively; merry; witty.’ (Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary) www.nationalgalleries.org