Lot 179
  • 179

Laurence Stephen Lowry, R.A.

Estimate
150,000 - 250,000 GBP
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Description

  • Laurence Stephen Lowry, R.A.
  • The Reservoir
  • signed and dated 1952
  • oil on board
  • 49 by 94cm.; 19ΒΌ by 37in.

Provenance

Lefevre Gallery, London, where acquired by the family of the present owner in the 1950s

Condition

The board is sound. There is a very small, old spot of paint loss to the lower left corner, otherwise the work appears in excellent original condition with a rich, textured surface. Under ultraviolet light there appear to be no signs of retouching. Held in a gilt plaster frame. Please telephone the department on 0207 293 6424 if you have any questions about the present work.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

Since his death in 1976, Lowry's position as perhaps the most popular British artist of the century has been secured, and he has been the subject of many exhibitions and publications. However the growing appreciation of his whole oeuvre has allowed us greater opportunity to look at the less familiar elements of his work. One theme that strikes any observer of his paintings, and which recurs increasingly in the latter part of his career, is that of solitude.

In 1968, and thus well before the painter's death, the Crane Kalman Gallery held a pioneering exhibition, The Loneliness of L.S.Lowry, which was the first to focus on the element of unquiet and distance from the world in his work and was a genuine surprise to those more familiar with the archetypical 'industrial' Lowry. Within this body of work, it is the empty landscapes, the single figure compositions, the outcasts and perhaps most of all, the sea paintings and lake landscapes that evoke this sense.

Devoid of the buildings and figures that so often are taken to define Lowry, the viewer is thrown into an unfamiliar and often disquieting position. The very austerity of these paintings forces us not only to address an entirely different aspect of an artist with whom we think ourselves conversant, but also to look at these landscapes and seascapes with full recognition of their potential harshness. These are not the idyllic English landscape of wooded vales, nor are they the gently rolling seas of the Cornish Riviera. These are empty and bleak moors where one can easily lose one's bearing in the mist and grey vistas. The Reservoir has an air of familiarity to anyone who knows the great reservoirs that collect the waters of the Pennines and feed the cities of Lancashire and Yorkshire; the wide expanse of flat water always seeming just a little at odds with the landscape around them, which of course as manmade constructions, they are. In the interwar and post-war periods they were seen as a new leisure resource and the hiking clubs and ramblers' societies that flourished at this time to offer workers a respite from the smog of the cities made them popular destinations. However, the creation of these huge enterprises frequently entailed the destruction of villages and hamlets, and local legends of drowned church bells tolling beneath the silent waters grew up. Indeed in some cases, such as at Ladybower reservoir, the spire of the village church was occasionally visible at very low water until it was dynamited in 1947.

This sense of a place slightly outside the everyday, a place of escape, is a key feature of much of Lowry's work. His fascination with buildings marooned as progress happened around them, districts derelict and defunct, the people one step off the pace of conventional life, is a constant in his painting and allows us to see how the empty landscapes and seascapes also follow this same aesthetic and exude a similar atmosphere.