When you ask Lord Macfarlane to name his favourite painting in his beloved Kelvingrove, he describes, without hesitation, a tiny still life of pansies by the Glasgow boy, Stuart Park. "That little picture seems to me to epitomise everything that's modest and good and lovely," he says. "It gladdens the eye every time."

This is Lord Macfarlane, the art lover, talking. "But if you were to ask me what I would take away from Kelvingrove because it is valuable, it would have to be Dali's Christ of St John of the Cross." This is Lord Macfarlane, the businessman, talking; the entrepreneur whose gladdened eye owes much to an instinct for the right investment.

Today, the potency of those credentials - culture and commerce entwined - will be honoured when Lord Macfarlane, now 82, receives the Freedom of the City of Glasgow from the Lord Provost, Liz Cameron, at a ceremony in the City Chambers. In the words of the Lord Provost, this ancient gift is the greatest a city can bestow. For his part, Lord Macfarlane - already the recipient of a haul of honours and decorations - regards his "freedom" as "a daunting but enormous privilege". This, after all, is the city that has shaped him and forged his endeavour. "I can only be thankful to my parents that from the moment of my birth, they ensured I was Glaswegian."

But when Lord Macfarlane of Bearsden informed his 14 grandchildren that he was now at liberty to graze cattle on Glasgow Green, they weren't terribly impressed.

"Then I told them that as a Freeman I also had the right to raise the militia in the event of Glasgow being attacked, and they thought that was cool." The fact is that Lord Macfarlane has always defended Glasgow, and even now he still feels duty bound to fight its corner against any lingering ignorance from outsiders.

On the day we met, the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions had just published its list of top Scottish venues, but to Lord Macfarlane's annoyance it had omitted any mention of the museum and art gallery at Kelvingrove which, in six months since completing its £29m refit, has welcomed more than two million people through its doors. "Now, by any measure that figure is magnificent," he says. It is also evidence that Kelvingrove has already overtaken Edinburgh Castle's 1.2 million visitors last year. Even so, the castle gains the Association's accolade of Scotland's number-one tourist attraction (the list is restricted to the association's members).

Nobody should confuse Lord Macfarlane's irritation for nit-picking parochialism. Today's Freeman ceremony celebrates his remarkable role as the force behind the Kelvingrove Refurbishment Appeal which, in five years, raised £12.75m - more than double its original target - for Glasgow's landmark venue, which contains £600m worth of treasures.

In all his activities Lord Macfarlane is committed to the bigger picture, and for him, Kelvingrove's renaissance symbolises the vision of Glasgow's revival as a global destination for investment and culture. "I have no doubt that it will become the biggest thing in Scotland for drawing that kind of interest. When the refurbishment was first discussed, folk would say to me, If only Glasgow had the Eiffel Tower', and I would reply, We have. It's Kelvingrove.' "The restoration gives the city council the confidence to think of Glasgow on the world stage. People are now visiting Kelvingrove from all over the world, and its potential for education alone is enormous."

The council itself provided £6m towards the refit; £13m was received from the Heritage Lottery Fund and £1m from the Scottish Executive. A massive injection of £5m was received from Tom Hunter, philanthropist and founder of the Sports Division retail chain, whose Kelvingrove educational wing, to be named after his father, Campbell Hunter, will open later this year. However, a veritable gold rush also poured in from 4000 citizens, who gave £800,000 to the project. Initially the fund's trustees had only dared hope for public donations to reach £100,000 at the most.

Lord Macfarlane's association with Kelvingrove stretches back 75 years. "From the age of five I was taken there by my Ma and Pa, and I've loved it ever since." He was born in Shawlands, and his sense of citizenship was inherited from his father, Daniel, a Progressive councillor for Partick West from 1955 to 1973.

Even as a child, Norrie Macfarlane was good with money. He seemed to have that instinctive knack to make it grow. "You see this in some children. There are those who can't hang on to a penny, and others who are natural savers and investors."

In this respect much credit, he says, must be given to Scottish prudence. "We have a big advantage there, because we've been raised not to waste money." It's a lesson he tries to pass on to his grandchildren, the same lesson he and Greta, his wife of 53 years, taught their own four daughters and son.

Lord Macfarlane is honorary president of the drinks giant Diageo, but more than 60 years ago he founded his own stationery business, NS Macfarlane, which later became the Macfarlane Group (Clansman). Today, though, he reflects that much of his business acumen was born from tragedy. When Lord Macfarlane was 17 his brother, Richard, was shot down and killed over German- occupied Belgium. Shortly before the tragedy, this bright hero had navigated for Group Captain Guy Gibson on the historic Dambusters raid. "We hadn't known the nature of his work, of course, but we guessed it was something important. Then, at 23, he was dead.

"Although no-one could replace Richard, his death made me want to make the most of my life, for my parents' sake, and as a way to honour his memory. In those circumstances the need to push yourself to the limit never really leaves you."

Is that the secret of his fundraising success? There is an Edwardian charm about the man, rooted in courtesy and a sensitivity to the common good. But close observers also detect the steely shrewdness of a tough negotiator, a much-tested determination not to be beaten. "Tom Hunter says he doesn't come near me any more in case I tap him for another million. But I've always been quite effective at explaining things and exciting people's interest."

And the ventures never stop. He's just arranged for Dr Jim Hunter to become Kelvingrove's director of music. The initiative means that from next month, the great organ there will be played daily at one o'clock in a free half-hour recital by leading musicians and organ scholars. "Edinburgh has the one o'clock gun; we have the momentous sound of an organ of international importance."

At Lord Macfarlane's request, music will also have its place in today's City Chambers ceremony, featuring choirs from Jordanhill Primary School and Notre Dame High School, the jazz band from Glasgow High and members of Knightswood Dance School. A proliferation of young talent which, as the city's newest Freeman reminds us, is the shining promise in Glasgow's bigger picture.

A legendary Lord: the story so far Born in Shawlands, Glasgow, in 1926. He moved to Broomhill with his family as a child. Attended the High School of Glasgow. Commissioned in the Royal Artillery and dispatched to Palestine. His Army career was finished when he broke his neck and back while diving. He broke his neck again, in 2005, in a crash near his Bearsden home. Founded NS Macfarlane, later known as Macfarlane Group (Clansman), with a small army gratuity. A recipient of the St Mungo Prize, awarded by Glasgow City Council, and honorary life president of drinks giant Diageo (he was drafted in to help restore confidence following the controversial takeover of Distillers by Guinness in the 1980s). Became a life peer in 1999.