Laurence Stephen Lowry, R.A. (1887-1976)

The present work is a typical example of Lowry's principle subject matter in the 1960s, in which he positions displaced figures, who congregate expectantly against an industrial backdrop. Among the group, the figure in the bowler hat may represent the artist himself. Lowry's frequent parambulations around the city and endless appetite for people-watching identifies him as an incessant observer of urban life. By placing himself in his work he maintains control and becomes the dominant yet invisible force: the watcher and the watched (see M. Howard, Lowry A Visionary Artist, Salford, 2000, p. 248).