Sir William George Gillies CBE LLD RSA PPRSW RA (1898-1973) Mixed Bouquet (1936) 66 x 81.3 cm. (26 x 32 in.) (Village and woodland scene (verso))Sir William George Gillies CBE LLD RSA PPRSW RA (1898-1973)Mixed Bouquet (1936) signed 'W. Gillies' (lower right)oil on canvas66 x 81.3 cm. (26 x 32 in.)Village and woodland scene (verso)ExhibitedEdinburgh, Aitken Dott & Son, Summer Exhibition, 1974Edinburgh, Aitken Dott & Son, October 1976, stock no.3595Private Collection, UKDuring the 1930s, Gillies began a striking series of still lifes, following his return to Edinburgh to live in the studio formerly owned by his friend William Crozier who died tragically early. The stability offered by Gillies' establishment of a professional studio, resulted in an increased number of still lifes as he was in more congenial surroundings in which to paint them. Gillies had developed a structured style and earthy palette, which would define his oeuvre.In 1932, while still only 33, he was invited to join Sir James Guthrie, Sir John Lavery, Cadell, Alison, Lintott, John Duncan and MacTaggart as a member of the exclusive and celebrated Society of Eight. New members of the club could be elected only as the result of a resignation or death. The news came as a happy shock to Gillies. It was apparently an astonishment to others. 'Why on earth did you elect that fellow?' someone asked Cadell. 'Well,' replied Gillies' proposer for membership, 'seven of us thought he was the right man.' Peploe was Gillies' other sponsor. (W. Gordon Smith, W G Gillies; A Very Still Life, 1991, p.47). In 1934, Gillies was made a full-time permanent member of staff at Edinburgh College of Art. A Mixed Bouquet dates to 1936, and is a rare example of this successful and exciting period that has been in the same private collection for the nearly five decades. It demonstrates Gillies command of the still life genre, and a masterclass in tonal harmonies.