What hidden gems; paintings of everyday people, going to and from work and school, alone, in groups, laughing and having fun, fighting with each other, walking with their pets and young children. The paintings are timeless and it is clear that they are engaging crowds of people, transfixed, curious and just enjoying the modern day parallels amidst excellent perspective and design. Yet, it seems
Lowry has challenged the art establishment way back and they will not stop criticising him. He dared to show how life was in the industrialised north of the country - lots of dirty factories, tiny terraced houses and people enjoying football and fairs. The beauty of his honesty and painterly capacities was largely ignored. Although the Brits claim they started the industrial revolution, there is an ignorance of what it really meant to the physical and human environment - and the audio guide frustrated me as a piece of
patronising propaganda. Lowry was portrayed as a failed middle class as he had to work as a rent collector for over 40 years. He was criticised for being a conservative, when there is no way that if he was, he would have painted the Welsh coal towns in the way he did. He was more prolific in the Parisian art salons than in London during the 1920's and 30's. Clearly the stuffy London art world wanted to live in ignorant bliss about what really happened outside their country estates and they could not even appreciate the brillant contrast of painterly people and perspectives, with impressionistic skies.
No comments:
Post a Comment