John Bulloch Souter 1890-1972

John Bulloch Souter was born in Aberdeen. Attended Ferryhill School in Aberdeen progressing to Robert Gordon’s College-Gray’s School of Art, at that time in Schoolhill. There he excelled in painting, drawing and sculpture and on graduating was awarded the Allan Fraser Scholarship for a period of four years at Hospitalfield Art College in Arbroath. In 1912, on the recommendation of Sir George Clausen [q.v.], Souter was awarded the Byrne Travelling Scholarship by the Scottish Education Department. Armed with this £120 stipend and an excellent working knowledge of Spanish and French, he travelled to Madrid in May of that year in order to study the works of the Spanish masters in the Prado Art Gallery and Museum and the monetary awards Souter had received from the Colonel Innes Prize for Sculpture and the Robert Brough Travelling Scholarship, enabling him to extend his time in Spain and Europe. During World War I served as non-combatant in Royal Medical Corps, then married and moved to London. By this time he established himself as an RA exhibitor. In 1926 Souter's picture The Breakdown caused a stir at RA, depicting a negro jazz musician, a naked white girl dancer and broken classical statue. Despite this, continued exhibiting at the Redfern Gallery, Fine Art Society, Royal Scottish Academy and elsewhere. Returned to Aberdeeen in 1952. His work is represented in a number of public collections (see Art UK).