Edinburgh from St. Anthony's Chapel

Louis Whirter

A commanding view of the Edinburgh, Scotland, skyline under a partially cloudy sky. To capture this dramatic beauty, Louis Whirter stood in Holyrood Park in central Edinburgh, in or beside what is called St. Anthony’s Chapel, a ruin containing the vaulted stone wall of a nave about which very little is known. Seen from its 12th century footprint is the Crown Steeple of St. Giles Cathedral and stone spire of the Tron Kirk.

Also known as Louis Weirter, the printmaker was an original member of the Scottish Society of Etchers and exhibited at the Royal Scottish Academy, the Paris Salon, and various other worldwide print exhibitions.

Printmaker, painter, and illustrator Louis Whirter (also: Weirter) was born in Edinburgh in 1873. He studied at the Royal Scottish Academy Schools, and in Paris. He is best known for his pictures of the Great War, as well as painted landscapes and architectural etchings. Somewhat confusingly, his paintings bear the signature "Louis Weirter," while his etchings are signed "Louis Whirter", perhaps owing to his German father's spelling of the last name.

Whirter fought in the 2nd Airborne observational group of the Royal Flying Corps, earning the rank of Captain and documenting the war in sketches that he later recreated in oil paintings. He illustrated a number of travel books, and worked as a poster designer for the Underground Group (Underground Electric Railways Company of London) in the last two years of his life. He lived in London and at Étaples in France.

From the obituary in The Art News, Vol. 30, no., 19, 2/6/1932: "Louis Weirter, the Scottish artist and inventor, died on the night of January 12 at his home in Onslow-Gardens, South Kensington, at the age of 61..."