The final works of an artist and lecturer who continued painting after a cancer diagnosis are to go on public display for the first time in a Scottish mansion house dating back to the early 18th century.
The career of Paul Martin, which spanned more than 50 years, will be celebrated this weekend at Dalkeith Palace, in Midlothian, despite the artist telling his family to burn his work after he passed away.
More than 180 works created by Edinburgh-based Martin, who taught for more than 20 years at Leith School of Art, will be going on display at the palace, which was the historic home of the Buccleuch family for more than 200 years.
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Much of the exhibition, which will feature painting, printmaking, sculpture and installations, will focus on the artist’s interests in the natural world.
He is the first solo artist to be showcased at Dalkeith Palace, which dates back to 1702, when it was instigated by Anna Scott, the first Duchess of Buccleuch.
She asked architect James Smith to drawn on William of Orange’s Netherlands residence for inspiration, with his design incorporating the remains of a 12th century on the land.
Martin’s work, some of which is in the collections of the British Museum and Royal Academy in London, was featured in at least 10 exhibitions in Edinburgh in the space of 17 years, and was also exhibited overseas, including in France, the Netherlands and Australia.
Born in Bournemouth, Martin studied at Birmingham School of Art and the Royal Academy in London before teacher art in a boarding school in Warwickshire. He was lured north to Scotland by a former protégé, Philip Archer, the long-time principal of Leith School of Art, who was keen for him to work there.
The exhibition, Where Echoes Rest, has been put together by the family of the artists, who passed away at the start of 2022, aged 73, from pancreatic cancer.
The artist’s son, Harry, told The Herald: “He had a short illness. He knew for about eight months that something was significantly wrong.
“He continued to work when he was ill – he just kept going. I cleared his workshop after he died and he didn’t leave anything unfinished. It was amazing, really.
“His final paintings weren’t little works of art. They were around two metres square. They are a kind of culmination of a lot of quite a lot of his pieces. It really felt like he had gone full circle.
“He had a sort of intensity and self-belief about his work. He felt it dealt with important themes and ideas. He never doubted his work. I think that’s why he wanted to get it all done and get everything finished.”
The artist’s son said the forthcoming exhibition will be the biggest ever showcase of his father’s work.
He added: “Before my dad died, I asked him what we should do with all of his work, as we knew there was a lot. There were sheds and garages full of it, as was his studio.
“He actually said: ‘Just take them outside and burn them.’ I don’t think he was being that negative. I think was just saying: ‘Look, don’t worry yourself with them.’ He didn’t want them to be a burden.
“But I felt that a lot of people had been very invested in dad’s work and there were a lot of his students that really loved his teaching, had followed his work quite closely and always came to his exhibitions.
“He was always a really good communicator about his work and what it was. He had a sort of intensity and self-belief about his work. He felt it dealt with important themes and ideas.
“Once we had a bit of time and space after his death, we reflected and thought we should take time to go through all his work and archive it.
“I felt we really needed to do something appropriate, find somewhere really good for an exhibition and go for it. One thing led to another and we found ourselves at Dalkeith Palace. It was a really good opportunity.”