Walter Geikie's sketches of Edinburgh

Walter Geikie had always taken inspiration from life around him. He often sketched the characters and events that appeared and disappeared from view on the streets he walked. Almost like someone might take a photograph today, Geikie captured the scene with his keen draughtsman's pencil. Geikie's etchings are perhaps the better known works from his oeuvre, but his simple pencil sketches rapidly put down on paper have a particular liveliness. He was known as having a lively sense of humour and could entertain his peers with his talent for mimicry. His observations and drawings are honest yet sympathetic to his subjects and you can read something of the character of the artist in his joyful and humorous character studies of others.
This exhibition brings together unique pencil sketches by Geikie capturing Edinburgh's streets, the landmarks and buildings he passed and the people who inhabited his bustling city.
Discover more about Walter Geikie's life and city on Our Town Stories.