Original Mixed Media Collage
Ian McCulloch RSA (1935-2026) - Mixed Media Collage
“Lady in Waiting”
A richly layered modernist profile combining painted passages, collage and symbolic design.
Key Details
Artist: Ian McCulloch RSA (1935-2026)
Title: Lady in Waiting
Medium: Mixed media collage
Support: Paper
Signature: Signed and dated 2006 lower right
Artwork Size: 14 × 21 cm (5.5 × 8.3 in)
Framed Size: 30 × 37 cm (11.8 × 14.6 in)
Condition: Excellent condition
Framing: Gilt frame with mount and glazing
Provenance: Original Roger Billcliffe Gallery label retained to the reverse
Description
Lady in Waiting is an original mixed-media collage by the Scottish artist Ian McCulloch RSA. The composition depicts a stylised female profile set against a vibrant abstract background of reds, blues and soft neutral tones.
A striking decorative floral collage element forms the subject's headwear, creating a layered and visually engaging composition characteristic of McCulloch's interest in symbolism, pattern and modernist design.
Rather than functioning as a traditional portrait, the work explores themes of identity and transformation through simplified forms and carefully balanced colour relationships. The combination of painted passages and applied collage elements reflects the artist's experimental approach to image-making.
Presented behind glass in an elegant gilt frame with mount, the work displays beautifully and is ready to hang.
About the Artist
Ian McCulloch RSA was a distinguished Scottish painter, printmaker, muralist and mixed-media artist. Born in Glasgow, he studied at Glasgow School of Art between 1953 and 1957 before receiving the prestigious Royal Scottish Academy Travelling Scholarship.
Throughout a career spanning more than six decades, McCulloch developed a highly individual visual language influenced by Cubism, Dada and Surrealism. His work frequently explored themes of mythology, transformation and human identity through bold colour, symbolic imagery and experimental techniques.
He received Scottish Arts Council awards, worked as Artist-in-Residence at the University of Sussex, won First Prize at the Stirling Smith Biennale and became a member of the Society of Scottish Artists. He was elected Associate of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1989 and a full Royal Scottish Academician in 2005.
In addition to his paintings and prints, McCulloch completed major public commissions including murals for the Italian Centre in Glasgow and the Glasgow International Concert Hall. His work is represented in public, corporate and private collections.
Provenance and Notes
Retains the original Roger Billcliffe Gallery label to the reverse. The label identifies the work as Lady in Waiting, records the medium as mixed media and shows an original gallery retail price of £385.
Roger Billcliffe Gallery was one of Scotland's leading contemporary art galleries and represented many of the country's most respected modern and contemporary artists. The surviving gallery label provides useful provenance and confirms the title of the work.
