Vincent Butler RSA 1933-2017

Vincent Butler RSA (1933 — 2017) was born in Manchester and trained at Manchester College of Art. Following graduation he continued his studies at Edinburgh College of Art and then, from 1955 - 57, completed his training at the Brera Academy of Art in Milan under the tutelage of Marino Marini and Giacomo Manzu. He continued to live and work in Italy before moving to Nigeria in 1960 to teach sculpture.

Returning to Scotland in 1963, Vincent set up a Studio in Stockbridge, Edinburgh and took up a teaching post at Edinburgh College of Art where he taught life-modelling and bronze casting until his retirement in 1989. Vincent was highly regarded as a sculptor and bronze caster, authoring Casting for Sculptors, a manual on casting methods published by A&C Black in 1997. He produced many bronzes, mainly of the human form but
occasionally also of animals or still life.

His sculptures are in NUMerous public and private collections and his public commissions can be seen in both Edinburgh and Glasgow. Amongst these
commissions there are numerous ecclesiastical works including the Stations of the Cross in St. Mark's Church, Oxgangs Avenue, Edinburgh (1959); The Woman Taken in Adultery, St. Mary's of the Angels Church, Falkirk (1960); a Cross for St. Paul's Church, Pennywell Road, Edinburgh (1968); and the Stations of the Cross in St. Anthony's Church, Rumford (1985). For Glasgow's year as City of Culture in 1990, Vincent produced the bronze figure
group Heritage and Hope in Atlas Square, Springburn (1989-90).

Vincent has also undertaken many sculpture portraits including of HRH Duke of Edinburgh, Lord Sutherland, Cardinal Gordon Gray, the poet laureate for Scotland Liz Lochhead, fellow sculptor Benno Schotz and other notable figures, several of which are in the Collection of the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. Throughout his career he also made great use of drawing - both figurative and landscape. Vincent has exhibited at the Royal Scottish Academy and Royal Glasgow Institute since 1963. He was elected an Associate of the RSA in 1972 and made a full Academician in 1977.