Mystery of missing Wick High School statue by famous sculptor Scott Sutherland
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A former pupil of Wick High School believes a statue that she saw over 60 years ago may still be in an attic space of the historic building on West Banks Avenue.
Garry Robertson said she had seen the statue, she believes was made by the well-renowned sculptor Scott Sutherland, when she was a sixth year pupil at the school in 1959-60.
"It was a three figure statuette by Scott Sutherland that I saw when I was in the sixth year and they allowed us to wander about a bit when we didn't have classes," said Garry.
"We went up to the attics above the science labs and that's when we came across it. My parents were at the school and remembered it in the school hall before it was taken out when the Second World War started. So they must have put it up into that attic around that time."
Garry says that the sculpture was of three wounded soldiers from the First World War and perhaps sent the wrong message out when the country went to war once again with Germany in September 1939. She was told it was created by Wick-born sculptor Scott Sutherland who recently had a plaque installed outside Wick Heritage Museum to commemorate his work and "keep his name alive".
Born in the town in 1910, Sutherland is best known for the Commando Memorial at Spean Bridge but he also created many other renowned monuments. He had served alongside commandos during his time in the Royal Artillery in World War II and in 1949 won a national competition to create the monument. The Commando Memorial overlooks the training grounds of the commando training centre established in 1942 at Achnacarry Castle in Lochaber. It was unveiled by the Queen Mother in 1952.
After leaving school in Wick, Sutherland – who was known as Scotty to colleagues and friends – trained in art in Aberdeen before studying sculpture in Edinburgh. He was awarded a scholarship to study in Paris and also travelled to Egypt, Greece and Italy. After his war service, Sutherland taught sculpture at art colleges in Belfast and Dundee.
Garry said: "I know that Scott Sutherland belonged here [Wick] and that his father taught here. He must have done the statue long before the commando one and been really young. As I remember, the three figure sculpture was smaller than we were." She believes it was a finished statue and not a maquette study for a larger work. "Seeing it and knowing from my parents it was a Scott Sutherland, I now wonder what's happened to it."
The sculptor's father was David Sutherland who was headmaster of West Banks School from 1908, which became Wick High School, and this may explain how the statue ended up there. David Sutherland went on to serve during the First World War and wrote about his experiences in reports for the John O'Groat Journal. These reports became the basis of a book he later published.
Despite early misgivings, Sutherland was consistently supportive of Scott's career as a sculptor and according to an article published in EverybodyWiki his son's "early maquette of a memorial to the Seaforths" was based on "his father's wartime experience". It appears that this maquette, a scale model or rough draft of an unfinished sculpture, is more than likely the same statue that Garry saw when exploring the attic spaces above the science labs at Wick High School in 1960.
The science labs later became the English department of the school and the building eventually closed in 2017 when Wick High School moved to new premises at the nearby campus facility. Before the school moved, however, computer science teacher Chris Aitken made a complete survey of the various old buildings and said there was no sign of a statue in the attics or anywhere else.
Garry said that a Scott Sutherland sculpture would be a significant find and wonders if any locals might hold key information as to its whereabouts now. "Surely to goodness they wouldn't just dump a Scott Sutherland? Looking at it was quite something. There were three figures – one was sitting or kneeling and the other two standing. When I heard the old high school building had been bought I wondered if it was still in there. If not, then where on earth is it?"
The new owner of the building, which had gone up for auction by Highland Council and recently bought, could not help in the search for the statue and told the paper he had not come across it. If anyone has information on the whereabouts of the sculpture the Caithness Courier and John O'Groat Journal would be interested to know. Please email david.scott@hnmedia.co.uk if you can help.
