Sale 6517, Lot 101 Laurence Stephen Lowry, R.A. (1887-1976) A Winding Road, 1961 Oil on board Estimate: £40,000-60,000 People and Places A superb single-owner group of six paintings by L.S. Lowry. By Rachel Hidderley This superb group of six oil paintings by L.S. Lowry, from a private British Collector, follows the record-breaking collection of nine pictures sold at Christie's in June by Frederick Forsyth, the political-thriller writer. These doubled pre-sale expectations, realising £1,723,850, a new auction record for a single-owner collection by this artist. Not unlike the present owner - five of whose pictures are from 1961 and 1962 - Mr Forsyth concentrated on the late 1950s and early 1960s, preferring street scenes from what he called 'Lowry's last and best twenty years'. The highlight of this season's group is a stunning view of Paddington Station. Lowry visited London a number of times, to visit a friend at the Slade School, and most notably to sketch the Coronation. The present work was painted in 1962 and demonstrates his continual fascination with a crowd, transferring the characters from Manchester to London on a busy afternoon. House by the Sea, also 1961, accentuates Lowry's grasp of the grotesque, in this case the unfeasibly tall house and formal gardens give a sense of the feelings of inferiority that would be felt by the approaching figures. In the same way, A Winding Road, 1961, presents a mother pushing a pram against the backdrop of an enormous hill with a desolate house perched at the very top. Lowry himself appears in Group of People with the Artist, 1961 (£50,000-80,000) as a tall grey-haired figure blending in with the crowd - a rare glimpse of the artist in his work. The Two Sisters, 1962 (£40,000-60,000), and the much-earlier Pendlebury Bridge, 1919 (£12,000-18,000), complete the group. Rachel Hidderley is Head of the 20th Century British Art Department, London. Inquiries: Rachel Hidderley Tel: +44 (0)20 7389 2684 Back to top