Glasgow Electric 50 years

This scene, of which we have a framed print on our office wall, was painted by famous illustrator/artist Terence Cuneo (1907-1996) in 1960.

The 'Glasgow Electric 50: 1960 - 2010' exhibition opened on Saturday 13 November for a period of two months at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery And Museum, Glasgow. The exhibition covers the history of electric commuter trains in Glasgow since they were introduced in 1960 with the iconic and much loved 'Blue Train', climaxing with the reopening of the Airdrie to Bathgate route.

A large collection of original items is in the exhibition such as timetables, posters, badges, postcards, promotional literature, books, transfers, model trains and pictures shown on a DVD player.

Terence Cuneo began his artistic career as an illustrator, but it was his work as a war artist which brought him national recognition. During WW2 while serving briefly with the Royal Engineers, Cuneo was the artist for the Illustrated London News in France. From 1941 he served as an official war artist, producing propaganda paintings for the Ministry of Information, and also illustrated the book How to Draw Tanks. In post war Britain, Cuneo became the establishment artist for much of the latter half of the twentieth century. As official artist at Queen Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953, his name was put before the public worldwide. He painted portraits, as well as landscapes and industry, but most famous are his railway scenes. His largest painting measuring 20 ft by 10 ft, commissioned by the Science Museum in 1967, was of the concourse at Waterloo Station in London. He was famous for putting a mouse in his paintings; this first appeared in 1953 and subsequently in most of his paintings thereafter. A statue to his memory at Waterloo Station was unveiled in October 2004.