Watercolour on paper, c.1839
William Henry Playfair (1790-1857)
RCAHMS: RIAS collection
This elevation is one of a set of drawings of an unexecuted design for Hillside House. In 1838, Playfair was commissioned to design a country residence for a Mr Fraser. He produced two versions of a design to replace the existing house, employing his neo-Jacobean style. Following the death of Mr Fraser’s agent, correspondence suggests that there was a financial problem, with Playfair demanding payment for ‘these valuable drawings, the result of much study and experience’. As the drawings were returned to Playfair, he cannot have received full payment.
After his death, the drawings were gifted to the Edinburgh Architectural Association and now form part of the RIAS Collection, held by RCAHMS. Hillside House was requisitioned by the armed forces during the Second World War, and is now a residential school.