Jack Vettriano, O.B.E.

Gifted by the artist to St. Andrew's University in 1993

The canvas is original. The work is in good original condition, clean and ready to hang. Ultraviolet light reveals no sign of retouching. Held in a simple black painted wooden frame in fair condition.
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The current work is a retrospective sketch of The Singing Butler which was left to the University of St Andrew's by the artist after giving a painting master-class to a group of students in 1993. This work was executed in one hour for demonstration purposes.

In his book entitled Lovers and Other Strangers; Paintings by Jack Vettriano, Anthony Quinn identifies that "Jack Vettriano has an ability to make you feel nostalgic for things you never actually experienced in the first place. He takes you to a mood and time that you know so well although you were never there." There are a small number of pictures that can truly be described as icons; paintings which are so widely known and loved that their popularity make them images which encapsulate the spirit of an age. The Singing Butler is such an image which is now one of the most famous paintings of the last decade and holds the world record price for a Scottish painting ever sold at auction (sold at Sotheby's, Hopetoun House, 19 April 2004). Few would not recognise the elegant sweep of limbs and the romantic theme of lovers dancing the night away in each other's arms and this picture more than any other contemporary painting has captured the hearts and imagination of the public. It is reported that in sales of postcards and prints of his work, Jack Vettriano outsells every other artist, including Monet! The Singing Butler is his most popular painting and it is perhaps plausible to suggest that this picture is among the most popular British paintings.