Stephens Orr
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J. Stephens Orr was a 20th century Scottish Glasgow photographer with an interest in fast people and faster motor cars. Practicing between c. 1930 and c. 1970 in Glasgow's Langside and later at No. 4 Somerset Place, Charing Cross, he became best known for his portraits of society figures in magazines such as Scottish Field — a group commonly referred to as "Town and Gown." This was in an age when Scottish culture was not seen as second-rate, and people of all classes saw nothing wrong with The White Heather Club (a 1960s Scottish TV show, viewed now as hopelessly kitsch, but still part of the Scottish psyche).
Besides his usual subjects — judges posing in full regalia, antidisestablishmentarianism lawyers (foregoing the respect of their peers at the Bar in return for a higher hoi polloi profile – their chief clients), rather racy Duchesses and controversial music hall characters — Orr also photographed some internationally famous celebrities and captains of industry, all visitors to Glasgow. Here is a small selection of personalities, with whom he no doubt had a "wee dram",[citation needed] in his north-facing studio:
- Paul Robeson — U.S. vocalist and black activist
- Dame Marie Rambert — Polish dancer and choreographer; founder of Ballet Rambert
- Marc Chagall — Jewish painter
- Richard Burton — Welsh actor
- Stanley Baxter — Scottish comedian
- Jacques Tati — French film maker
- Paul Tortelier — French Catholic-Jewish celloist
- David Brown, Aston Martin cars
- William Lyons, Jaguar, Austin cars
- Walter Owen Bentley, Rolls Royce/Bentley cars
- Nicholas Fairbairn — Scottish lawyer
Distinctive in kilt and large in personality, coupled with a portrait style similar to Yousuf Karsh, Orr recorded the last glimmers of a confident Scottish society in flamboyant style. His later life was spent with his wife, Jenny, on the Scottish Clyde coast island of Cumbrae.
