Latest news with #GoingtotheMill
Kuwait Times
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Kuwait Times
£10 painting by English 'matchstick men' artist may fetch £1 million
A rare work by the painter LS Lowry, known for his depictions of English working-class life, originally bought for 10 pounds is expected to fetch up to £1 million ($1.3 million) when it goes under the hammer, auctioneers said Monday. The painting, "Going To The Mill", was bought by literary editor Arthur Wallace in 1926 and has been in his family ever since. Lowry, who died in 1976 at the age of 88, won fame for his paintings of industrial parts of northern England populated with his signature "matchstick" figures. The work shows mill workers scurrying to work with tall factory chimneys belching out black smoke in the background. Completed in 1925, it is believed to be one of the earliest sales made by Lowry in an unusual two-for-one deal the buyer negotiated directly with the artist. Originally priced at £30, Lowry then suggested a price of £10 for the oil on panel work, which was agreed, according to Wallace's grandson Keith Wallace. "Grandpa wrote a cheque," he said. "Then Lowry wrote back to him saying: 'I think I've charged you too much. Can I give you another one as well?' So Grandpa got two Lowrys for his £10." The Wallace family still have Lowry's letter from November 9, 1926 where he writes: "Many thanks for your letter and cheque for £10. I am very glad Mrs Wallace likes the picture." The second work, "Manufacturing Town", was previously sold by the family. Simon Hucker, senior specialist in modern and contemporary art at the Lyon & Turnbull auction house, said the painting was a rare yet classic Lowry painting. "'Going To The Mill' is the epitome of a 1920s Lowry, when he truly becomes a unique voice," he said. "It is especially rare for a painting such as this to have had only one owner," he added. A work of similar size and date sold from HSBC's collection last year went for £1.2 million, Hucker said. "Going to the Mill" will be sold on Friday at Mall Galleries, where it is estimated to sell for £700,000 to £1 million. After his death, Lowry's work was celebrated in the hit song "Matchstalk Men and Matchstalk Cats and Dogs" by musical duo Brian and Michael. The song reached number one in the UK pop charts in 1978. - AFP
The Guardian
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
LS Lowry painting bought for £10 in 1926 sells at auction for £800,000
A rare painting by LS Lowry bought for £10 has sold at auction for more than £800,000. The painting, Going to the Mill, was bought by the literary editor of the Manchester Guardian, Arthur Wallace, for £10 in 1926 and has been in the same family ever since. On Friday the artwork sold at auction at the Mall Galleries in central London for £805,200, including buyer's premium. Lowry, who was lauded for his portrayal of everyday industrial scenes in northwest England, painted the piece in 1925. Going to the Mill is marked on the back as being £30, but Lowry let Wallace have it for £10. Adjusted for inflation, that is the equivalent of £521 in 2025, according to the Bank of England's calculator. The painting is believed to be one of the earliest sales made by the Stretford-born painter. Lowry also gave Wallace an additional work, The Manufacturing Town, which the family sold several years ago. Wallace had edited a supplement for the Guardian to accompany a civic week organised by Manchester city council in October 1926, and featured three paintings by the then struggling artist. As Wallace's grandson Keith explains, Lowry was featured in an accompanying exhibition at a Manchester department store, and Wallace – who had fallen for his sooty panoramas of factory-bound crowds – offered to buy one. 'Lowry said with great daring: 'Could we say £10?' and Grandpa wrote a cheque. Then Lowry wrote back to him saying: 'I think I've charged you too much. Can I give you another one as well?' So Grandpa got two Lowrys for his £10.' Going to the Mill, which has been in the Wallace family for the last century, was recently on long-term loan to Pallant House Gallery in Chichester. Simon Hucker, a modern and contemporary art specialist at the Lyon & Turnbull auction house said: 'We're absolutely delighted by the price achieved for this exceptional, early painting by Lowry, bought from him when he was a virtual unknown. There are few artists who become a household name in Britain and Lowry definitely falls into this category. 'This is a painting shows that Lowry at his conceptual best, no naive painter of 'matchstick men', as the old pop song went. Instead he is an artist of true dexterity who is making deliberate formal choices, abstracting the figure in order to express an idea about loneliness and isolation within the teeming city. 'Going to the Mill is the epitome of a 1920s Lowry, the period when he becomes a unique voice in British art. It is especially rare is for a painting such as this to have been in one collection for one year shy of a century and we are delighted to have played a small part in its history.' In 2024 a Lowry painting titled Sunday Afternoon sold for almost £6.3m at auction.
BBC News
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Lowry painting sold by painter for £10 makes £800k at auction
A painting L. S. Lowry sold for £10 has made more than £800,000 at To The Mill was bought in 1926 by the Manchester Guardian's literary editor, Arthur Wallace, for the equivalent of £520 in today's Stretford-born artist thought he had charged Mr Wallace "too much" and gave him another painting, called The Manufacturing Town, for earlier, Going To The Mill was sold by Mr Wallace's family at a London auction for £805,000. Simon Hucker, the modern and contemporary art specialist for auctioneers Lyon & Turnbull, said the painting was from a time when Lowry was "a virtual unknown". "There are few artists who become a household name in Britain and Lowry definitely falls into this category," he added. 'Rare' Lowry painted Going to the Mill in 1925, 14 years before he achieved fame with a one-man scenes of everyday life against industrial backdrops of Manchester were populated by distinctive simple figures that were the subject of the 1978 Brian and Michael single Matchstalk Men and Matchstalk Cats And Dogs. Going To The Mill features a mill and chimney stack and millworkers in the foreground. It was recently on long-term loan to Pallant House Gallery, Hucker added: "Going to the Mill is the epitome of a 1920s Lowry, the period when he becomes a unique voice in British art. "It is especially rare is for a painting such as this to have been in one collection for one year shy of a century and we are delighted to have played a small part in its history." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
The Herald Scotland
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
L.S Lowry painting sold by artist for £10 fetches more than £800k
Lyon & Turnbull, an Edinburgh-based auctioneers, sold the painting which had been in the hands of the same family for the last century and is believed to have been one of the earliest sales made by Lowry. It was originally acquired directly from Lowry by the Manchester Guardian's literary editor A.S Wallace, who used three of his works to illustrate a special supplement to mark Manchester Civic Week in October 1925. Going to the Mill is marked as being £30, but Lowry sold it for £10 and he was still so worried he had overcharged that he gave his friend an additional painting called The Manufacturing Town, which was sold several years ago. Read More 10 new art exhibitions to see in Scotland this May Simon Hucker, Lyon & Turnbull's Modern & Contemporary Art Specialist and Head of Sale said: 'We're absolutely delighted by the price achieved for this exceptional, early painting by Lowry, bought from him when he was a virtual unknown. There are few artists who become a household name in Britain and Lowry definitely falls into this category. Mr Hucker added: "This is a painting shows that Lowry at his conceptual best – no naïve painter of 'matchstick men', as the old pop song went. Instead he is an artist of true dexterity who is making deliberate formal choices, abstracting the figure in order to express an idea about loneliness and isolation within the teeming city. "Going to the Mill is the epitome of a 1920s Lowry, the period when he becomes a unique voice in British art. It is especially rare is for a painting such as this to have been in one collection for one year shy of a century and we are delighted to have played a small part in its history."
IOL News
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- IOL News
£10 painting by 'matchstick men' artist may fetch £1 million
Going to the Mill was purchased by the Guardian's literary editor Arthur Wallace in 1926. A rare work by the painter LS Lowry, known for his depictions of English working-class life, originally bought for 10 pounds is expected to fetch up to £1 million (R25 million) when it goes under the hammer, auctioneers said this week. The painting, "Going To The Mill", was bought by literary editor Arthur Wallace in 1926 and has been in his family ever since. Lowry, who died in 1976 at the age of 88, won fame for his paintings of industrial parts of northern England populated with his signature "matchstick" figures. The work shows mill workers scurrying to work with tall factory chimneys belching out black smoke in the background. Completed in 1925, it is believed to be one of the earliest sales made by Lowry in an unusual two-for-one deal the buyer negotiated directly with the artist. Originally priced at £30, Lowry then suggested a price of £10 for the oil on panel work, which was agreed, according to Wallace's grandson Keith Wallace. "Grandpa wrote a cheque," he said. "Then Lowry wrote back to him saying: 'I think I've charged you too much. Can I give you another one as well?' So Grandpa got two Lowrys for his £10." The Wallace family still have Lowry's letter from November 9, 1926 where he writes: "Many thanks for your letter and cheque for £10. I am very glad Mrs Wallace likes the picture." The second work, "Manufacturing Town", was previously sold by the family. Simon Hucker, senior specialist in modern and contemporary art at the Lyon & Turnbull auction house, said the painting was a rare yet classic Lowry painting. "'Going To The Mill' is the epitome of a 1920s Lowry, when he truly becomes a unique voice," he said. "It is especially rare for a painting such as this to have had only one owner," he added. A work of similar size and date sold from HSBC's collection last year went for £1.2 million, Hucker said. "Going to the Mill" will be sold on Friday at Mall Galleries, where it is estimated to sell for £700,000 to £1 million. After his death, Lowry's work was celebrated in the hit song "Matchstalk Men and Matchstalk Cats and Dogs" by musical duo Brian and Michael. The song reached number one in the UK pop charts in 1978. | AFP
