George Jackson Hutchison (1896 - 1918)
George was the only son of Robert Gemmel Hutchison, the famous Edinburgh painter, and his wife Margaret Forman He proved to be very talented from a young age and had the promising career ahead of him. There are several paintings known by him portraying this same donkey in the stable. It could very well have been that this painting remained unfinished because George left to fight in the First World War. Unfortunately he never got the opportunity to reach the fame of his father. George Jackson Hutchison died on the battlefields in 1918, aged 20.
Every year the RSA awards the Maude Gemmell Hutchison Prize for the best painting or drawing of an animal(s) in memory of George Jackson Hutchison. This prize was instigated by George’s sister Maude after he passed away.