Artists

Jack Vettriano, born in Fife, Scotland, in 1951, is known for his evocative, film noir-inspired paintings. He left school at 15 to work as an apprentice engineer in the mines. A self-taught artist, he began painting as a hobby in the 1970s after receiving a set of watercolours for his twenty-first birthday. In 1988, Vettriano submitted two paintings to the Royal Scottish Academy’s Annual Exhibition and both sold on the opening day. His most famous painting, The Singing Butler (1992), sold at auction in 2004 for just under £750 000 and subsequently became one of the best selling images in the UK. Vettriano has received several accolades, including an OBE in 2003 for his contributions to the visual arts, and he has exhibited in cities like Edinburgh, London, Johannesburg, and New York.