Exhibition of illustrations by the prolific Scot better known for words

THE sketches and motifs which have helped bring to life "one of the landmarks of 20th-century fiction" will go on display in Edinburgh today.

The exhibition, on show at the the University of Edinburgh's Talbot Rice Gallery, shows artwork by Alasdair Gray, one of Scotland's most acclaimed writers.

Gray Stuff: Designs for Books and Posters, 1952-2010 will feature illustrations by the 75-year-old author which were used in his critically acclaimed novels such as Lanark, Poor Things and Old Men In Love.

The exhibition coincides with the launch of A Life in Pictures, an extensive visual biography of the Glasgow-born writer, and a display of his portraits at Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art in Edinburgh.

Gray trained as a visual artist at Glasgow School of Art from 1952 to 1957, and has worked with both pictures and text ever since.

Though he became better known as a writer, in recent years his visual work has begun to receive international recognition.

His output combine elements of realism, fantasy, and science fiction, plus clever use of typography and his own illustrations.

He has written on politics, in support of socialism and Scottish independence, and on the history of English literature.