L.S. Lowry RA 1887-1976

Seascape, 1938

Oil on canvas
8 x 12 ins (20.32 x 30.48 cms)
Signed and dated lower left.

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Provenance

Private Collection
Christes sale 8th June 2007
Private Collection
Clark Art Ltd
Private Coillection

Exhibition History

The Lowry Centre, Salford - various exhibitions 2007 - 2012
Stoke Museum and Art Gallery - Lowry and Berry: Observers of Urban Life
25 Jul 2015 - 10 Jan 2016.

General Notes

The sea was a constant presence in Lowry's life and in his work; he returned to the subject again and again, displaying his inherent fascination with it as a subject and as an metaphor for both his own loneliness and nature's omnipresence.

This is an early example of a theme that Lowry would repeatedly return to: the empty seascape that imbues a deep sense of calm, devoid of any depicted figures that would interrupt the enormity of nature's power and presence, and its immeasurability. The careful control of tone and colour contrasts with light, playful brushwork so that the water appears to shimmer and merge into the horizon beyond. The water seems to capture the imagination of both artist and viewer. The enormity of Lowry's subject here, where elements merge and the boundaries between sky and sea are blurred, is juxtaposed with the small dimensions of the canvas itself.