John Adam P. Houston RSA 1812 -1884

John Adam Houston was born at GwydyrCastle, North Wales, on 26th December 1812. His father was a native of Renfrewshire, where the family had a small estate near the village of Houston. Through his mother he was first cousin to Alexander Nasmyth, the founder of the Scottish School of Landscape Painting.

He studied at the Trustees’ Academy, under Sir William Allan, whose friendship he retained during his life. His first contribution to the Annual Exhibition was a Cattle Piece, exhibited in 1831. His father about this time having in vain attempted to induce him to abandon Art for Law, Houston left Edinburgh and became a student of the Royal Academy, Hilton and Etty being then connected with its School as Visitors.

He remained in London studying and practising assiduously for upwards of five years, frequently visiting France and Germany, and exhibiting in the Royal Scottish Academy’s Exhibitions pictures mainly taken from sketches made during his travels. He returned to Edinburgh in 1841, and produced numerous characteristic figure pictures, his sub- generally being taken from the period of Elizabeth and Cromwell.

In 1855 he was compelled, on account of his jects health, to go to Italy, and after two years’ residence in that country he returned to Edinburgh, only to find that the climate did not agree with him, and finally he settled in London in 1858, where he resided during the remainder of his life, continuing, however, to the end a staunch supporter of our Annual Exhibition.

He was elected an Associate of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1842, and attained the rank of Academician in 1845. He was also a Member of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water-Colours.

Transcribed from the 1884 RSA Annual Report