John Atkinson Grimshaw

Original canvas. Small undulation lower left, the surface is slightly dirty otherwise the work appears in good overall condition. Ultraviolet light reveals no apparent signs of retouching. Held in a gilt plaster frame.
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'Grimshaw's paintings have ‘a tender, poetic feeling; many of his canvases might well be described as “poems in paint" … [and marked by] a refined sense of colour' (George Birkett, 1897, quoted in Jane Sellars, Atkinson Grimshaw, Painter of Moonlight, 2011, p.125)

Grimshaw is well known for his dockside scenes of both Glasgow and Liverpool which became a reccurring theme in his life’s work. Both locations were important ports that linked Britain with the Empire and underwent a dramatic change with the arrival of the Industrial Revolution. Grimshaw began to paint the dockside motif around 1875 when he became established on the London art market, and he became well practised at painting such a prospect.

Glasgow Lights depicts a typical Victorian street scene with carriages passing through the heavy city fog and people walking along the shop front, their dark shapes appearing along the length of the pavement. The bright yellow glow of the shop windows is luminous and radiant compared to the rest of the scene, which mainly consists of a monochromatic colour palette. Despite this, Grimshaw manages to transform what would have been a dark and damp street into a richly atmospheric cityscape. There is no definite horizon at the end of the street but instead it merges into an indistinct vanishing point, comparable to J.M.W Turner’s later works where the horizon is so unfocused it is barely distinguishable. The large black carriages emerge from the gloom of the city with their lights appearing like small beacons glinting through a sea mist. On the right, the rigging of the ships is finely detailed and meticulously depicted as the masts tower above those below, equalling the height of the facing buildings. The shop front spills its yellow light onto the pavement, making the wet stone slabs golden in colour and glimmer under the feet of the passers-by.

Grimshaw's reputation was built on his consummate ability to render light, from the soft glow of the moon to autumn's golden hue. The buildings that line the left hand side of the present work demonstrate Grimshaw's expertise. Their upper halves are bathed in the silvery light of the moon, while the gas lit shop fronts are painted with rosy hues and touches of burnt sienna which dissipate into the darkness. Glasgow Lights exemplifies Grimshaw's mastery of the nocturnal street scene and his ability to produce work at a continually high standard.