Alexander Carrick

In 1916 Carrick joined the Royal Garrison Artillery and served in Belgium throughout the war (The location of sketches which he made at this time have been identified as lying just north of the village of Ypres).

He later received a commission from the South African Scottish Regimental Association to carve a copy of the Killin soldier for their own memorial which stands in Burghers Park in Pretoria.

As part of the bequest of one Captain Reid, a competition was held for the design of statues depicting Scotland's national heroes Sir William Wallace and King Robert the Bruce to stand in niches set into the castle wall on either side of the gateway.

With the end of the war memorial period and the onset of the economic depression, Carrick undertook many smaller works including continuing renovations and repairs at George Heriot's School in Edinburgh, Pollok House in Glasgow, and Dunnotar Castle.

He also executed several memorial tablets featuring portraits, including that to Sir Walter Scott on the front of Jedburgh Sheriff Court,[4] and one to the founder of the Boys' Brigade, William A. Smith in St. Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh.

[3] Carrick was commented on as having a strong and forthright personality and a good sense of humour which made him a popular and highly influential figure at the Royal Scottish Academy.

His students included Phyllis Bone,[5] a near contemporary and lifelong friend who gained an international reputation as an animal sculptor, and the Art Deco potter Emma Smith Gillies.

Carrick reassured the concerned father and Scott soon began his studies in Edinburgh, which would establish him in a long career, producing many acclaimed works, the most famous being the Commando Memorial at Spean Bridge.

An unemployed ship's carpenter from Leith named Tom Whalen wandered into one of Carrick's evening classes after spending years whittling away on pieces of scrap wood.

Carrick's influence arguably ensured that sculpture retained its status and prestige within the Academy, for example by travelling to Paris in 1938 and persuading the leading French sculptors of the period to travel to Edinburgh for a special exhibition of French sculpture in 1939. Business Papers – Lodged with the National Monument Record of Scotland office, Edinburgh Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art Archive ( photocopies of the Carrick collection of press cuttings ) The Studio Vol.

LXXXVIII, No.379, October 1924 ( short article on 'The Gunner' ) The Scots Magazine, November 1992 ( article written by this author ) Author's notes taken on two interviews with Anne and Elizabeth Carrick, 1992 (Copies lodges with RSA and SNGMA) Modelling and Sculpting the Human Figure, Edouard Lanteri, Dover 0-486-25006-7 Virtue and Vision, Sculpture and Scotland 1540–1990, National Galleries of Scotland Hew Lorimer Sculptor, Talbot Rice Gallery Exhibition Programme, University of Edinburgh, Duncan MacMillan 1988.

The Killin war memorial. Carrick's soldier bears some resemblance to Michelangelo's David , but while Michelangelo 's figure grasps a primitive sling, Carrick's grasps the sling of a rifle.
Oban war memorial. The large rock, a glacial erratic , provides an interesting foil for the monument, indeed the shape is so similar that it may have been the inspiration for Carrick's figurative group
The Fraserburgh war memorial featuring Carrick's allegorical group 'Justice Guiding Valour'. 'Justice' restrains 'Valour' with a light touch of her finger, an action which is perhaps reminiscent of the light touch of the angel waking the Magi on the capital at Autun by Gislebertus .
Carrick's 8-foot bronze of Sir William Wallace , at Edinburgh Castle . Carrick was criticised over the proportions of this figure, but it may be that he was subtly adapting the proportions of the body to the stones of the wall itself, thus integrating Wallace and wall. More recently, it was during a visit to Edinburgh that American screenwriter Randall Wallace saw this statue and was inspired to write the script for the Mel Gibson film Braveheart .
Carrick's group 'Security' on the Caledonian Insurance Building, Edinburgh. The bronze has an unusual green patina and the group was based on Carrick's diploma work 'Felicity'