Ian Strang was the son of William Strang RA, who was born in Dumbarton in 1859 and died in Bournemouth in 1921,
In 1926, to commemorate the return of the Burgess Ticket , the Burns Club commissioned Mr Strang to prepare an etching incorporating the head of Burns, drawing from Nasmyth’s famous portrait and Skirving’s chalk drawing, and the Burgess Ticket.
The lower part of the etching shows both sides of the Ticket.
In the background on the right is Dumbarton Rock and on the left, the Auld Brig of Ayr, thus symbolising Burns association with the two ancient towns.
This image has been the frontispiece of Dumbarton Burns Club’s annual Supper programme since 1927.
The wherabouts of the original etching plate is unknown.
Etcher, draughtsman, illustrator, and painter known for his architectural studies and compositions, Ian Strang was born 1886 in London. Son of artist William Strang, he studied at the Slade School of London under Henry Tonks and Frederick Brown from 1902 to 1906, and then at the Academie Julian under J.P. Laurens (1906-1908).
He travelled throughout Europe for some time, and held his first solo exhibition at the Goupil Gallery in 1914. That same year he served in World War I in the Middlesex and Royal Berkshire Regiments until 1919, when he once more began pursuing his art career. He became a member of the Faculty for Engraving at the British School in Rome, through which he published the Students’ Book of Etching in 1938. Well known as an etcher, his early works included drypoint to convey tonality, but in his later works he used pure etching techniques to achieve the desired effect.
He died at Wavendon, Buckinghamshire, 23 March 1952. A memorial exhibition was held at the Leicester Galleries in 1952.