John Bellany  CBE RA HRSA was born in 1942 in the fishing village of Port Seton on the east coast of Scotland. He studied painting at Edinburgh College of Art under Sir Robin Phillipson from 1960 until 1965, following which he went on to attend the Royal College of Art, London, where he studied under Carel Weight from 1965 to 1968.

Bellany is arguably the most influential Scottish artist of his generation, responsible for the resurgence of figurative painting out of which came New Glasgow Boys such as Peter Howson and Ken Currie.

His work is represented in major collections throughout the world including The Museum of Modern Art and The Metropolitan Museum in New York as well as The Tate Gallery in London and the National Galleries of Scotland.