£27,500
Five Centuries: Furniture, Paintings & Works of Art | 689
Auction: Five Centuries: Furniture, Paintings & Works of Art
Signed and dated 1899 lower left, oil on canvas
Louis Grimshaw, son of acclaimed painter John Atkinson Grimshaw, was born in 1870. Louis trained under his father and for a spell the pair painted collaboratively, with John executing the sky and landscape and Louis working on the figures. Like his father, Louis generally painted nocturnes, but he diverged by predominantly representing London. Louis’ career as an artist was relatively brief, as he gave up painting in 1905 to work as a cartographer for the Manchester Guardian, and his paintings are consequently rare.
Houses of Parliament was painted in 1899, and is a particularly fine example of Louis Grimshaw’s oeuvre. His father’s influence is clear in the muted palette, luscious atmosphere and accomplished handling of light. Despite electing to portray a quintessential London view, Grimshaw approaches the scene with remarkable insight and originality.