Hamish Henderson, An Artist’s Inspiration

What drove Charles Nasmyth to paint a portrait of a man he never met, and had barely heard of?

The Fife-based artist became inspired by the life and work of Hamish Henderson, after meeting Katzel, his widow.

He spent a year learning from Hamish’s former friends and colleagues about his achievements. Well known for his folk song collecting and support for Scottish self-determination, Charles discovered that there was much more to admire in Hamish’s life story. 

In particular, his own poetry and song-writing, his remarkable war-service in the British Army and his inspirational teaching at Edinburgh University.

Henderson’s folk-song collecting, Charles discovered, was motivated not just by his Perthshire roots, but the influence of Italian philosopher, Antonio Gramsci, whose respect for the ‘culture of the people’ he deeply admired.

And he was determined that the ‘carrying stream’ of Scottish culture, expressed in the songs, ballads and stories he collected, should not be swamped by outside influences. Especially that the Scots language should thrive as a living expression of Scotland’s identity and culture. 

In this film, Charles revisits the people who taught him Hamish’s life-story. And explains why he was inspired to paint his portrait.

Before the film, two men who knew Hamish well will give a brief introduction. Willie Hershaw, editor of the Scots langauge magazine, Lallans, explains how Hamish helped to give clout to Scots, with elements of the language still used every day by most people in Scotland. And Professor Fred Freeman, now at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, studied under Hamish at the School of Scottish Studies and was a close friend.