Ö÷²¥´óÐã

When he launched the Glasgow Boys exhibition back in April, Kelvingrove champion and avid collector Lord MacFarlane of Bearsden, was convinced there were many more works of art out there.

"You only have to look at the lists of paintings exhibited at the time to see there are least 100 unaccounted for," he says.

"There are probably lofts and attics in the west end of Glasgow which have Glasgow Boys works tucked away and this exhibition may give a reason to bring them out."

Two and a half months and 36,000 visitors later, and the Glasgow Boys exhibition is going strong but no sign of any of those missing paintings.

When I meet Lord Macfarlane again, he's still upbeat about finding them.

"There's one work by Alexander Roche, which is the size of Guthrie's A Highland Funeral, which is huge.

"It's never been seen in public. And if works as large as that can be hidden away, it opens up all sorts of possibilities about what's out there," he says.

And while they haven't uncovered any paintings, they've at least found out a bit more about the people in some of the paintings.

Prue Whyte, who lives in London, got in touch to say her grandfather is the small boy in Guthrie's aforementioned Highland Funeral.

"My great grandfather was a dentist, and an amateur artist. He had his own studio in Helensburgh. Guthrie didn't have a studio, my great grandfather did, so he used his studio and his children as models."

As well as Prue's grandfather, nine-year-old John, his sister Kristina was used for another famous picture - To Pastures New - which features her herding geese.

The Whyte family even managed to round up a goose, although Guthrie finished the painting - with Kristina - in a more rural setting.

Prue and her family only realised the connections after the death of her own father in the 1980s.

"It is amazing to know the people in these very significant paintings are your family."

Senior curator Jean Walsh says the Whytes aren't the only family to get in touch.

"We always knew these were real people with real lives, but we're able to put lots of extra details in now.

"Like the fact the children in the painting Playmates were all members of the Anderson family.

"Guthrie may have seen them walking back and forwards on their way to school, and decided to paint them. they look quite glum, and it's obviously cold, and in winter, which explains why they do look glum."

It wasn't all glumness though.

According to family members, Guthrie's mother stayed at Cockburnspath while he painted and rustled up milk and cucumber sandwiches for his models - on white bread, which was unheard of at the time.

But mystery still surrounds one of Guthrie's subjects.

Old Wullie, who appears in several of Guthrie's paintings from Kirkcudbright has yet to be identified, despite his distinctive sideburns and hat, and obvious practical abilities when it comes to gardening.

Curators hope someone will be able to reveal his identity before the exhibition is out.