William Hardie is an acknowledged authority on Scottish painting. He was educated at Glasgow Academy and Glasgow University, and was Keeper of Art, and then Deputy Director of Dundee Art Gallery and Museum. He joined Christie's in Scotland and set up the Scottish Pictures Department, which played a major role in the transformation of the international market for Scottish art. He formed William Hardie Limited in Glasgow in 1984, as consultants specialising in Scottish painting, He has pioneered the renewed interest in Scottish artists such as the Glasgow School, George Dutch Davidson, Stanley Cursiter, William McCance and Donald Bain. Peter Howson held his first solo exhibition at the William Hardie Gallery.