Man Going to Work (Figure in a Gateway)

Details

Laurence Stephen Lowry, R.A. (1887-1976)
Man Going to Work (Figure in a Gateway)
signed and dated 'L.S. LOWRY 1960' (lower right)
oil on canvas
11½ x 15¾ in. (29.2 x 40 cm.)

Provenance

with Investart Ltd., London, where purchased by the present owner in November 1989.

Literature

J. Sandling and M. Leber, Lowry's City A Painter and his Locale, Salford, 2000, p. 57, no. 11.3, illustrated, dated 1964.

Exhibited

Sunderland, Museum and Art Gallery, on loan, 1990-2006.

Special notice

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

The gateway represents an important aspect of Lowry's urban landscape and this particular image was a specific location: the Improved Industrial Dwellings, 'built in 1870 to provide reasonable housing for some of those Salfordians who were living in appalling conditions'. In comparison with Lowry's earlier sketch of 1931, The Gateway, there is a notable development from 'detailed industrial scenes to the single uncomplicated image' (see J. Sandling and M. Leber, Lowry's City, loc. cit.). The painting combines the artist's interest in this particular characteristic of the urban landscape with a simplified approach to style.

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