Atkinson Grimshaw

by Alexander Robertson

Atkinson Grimshaw's early landscapes were influenced by the pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood's ideals of painstaking detail, but he later developed a distinctive kind of industrial landscape, lit by moonlight, gaslight, or both. These urban scenes were very popular with the public, particulary in the north of England where he did so much of his work, but less so with the offical art world.

Contents:
The Leeds background;
Early years;
Knostrop old hall;
Painter of moonlight;
"No marks of handling"
Grimshaw's methods and technique.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 15, 1990

About the author

Alexander W. Robertson is Senior Curator at Leeds Museums and Galleries.

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

John Atkinson Grimshaw was an English Victorian-era painter whose works ranged from detailed portraits and landscapes to moonlit scenes of city streets, country lanes, and shipping harbors. He fell into relative obscurity for over 50 years after this death but was rediscovered in the 1950s.

This book seeks to reconstruct a coherent biography of Grimshaw, although personal records are sparse for some periods of his life. There are about 40 wonderful color plates in the book. However, at least an equal number of his pieces are rendered in black and white, and often at a smaller scale. Although they keep the book more affordable (an advantage for many of us), they don't allow Grimshaw's unique style to show to full advantage. Still, this is an enjoyable volume, whether for perusal or study.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Atkinson Grimshaw was a remarkable Victorian painter. Living in Leeds, he is much less known than the top Academy-related artists. He started with pre-Raphaelite-style landscapes and experimented with paintings in the style of Tissot and Alma-Tadema. However, he achieved true recognition for his amazing and unique moonlight landscapes and cityscapes. You really should see them to fully appreciate. He produced a lot of paintings and was popular with Victorian industrialists, but very few of his paintings can be found in museums. Most are in the private collections and you only can see them at auctions and very rare exhibitions. This book lists only 4 US museums that have his paintings. There are more in the UK, but most are regional museums, so regular travelers focused on great London museums have few chances to see Grimshaw’s work. I discovered some of his work in Leeds and was really fascinated. I was glad to find this book to learn more. However, the book is a mixed blessing. On one hand, it offers a very good review of both his life and painting. It has 110 plates of Grimshaw paintings plus some enlarged fragments. On the other hand, most of these paintings are shown in black and white photos. There are only 33 color plates and among them, there are very few cityscapes that I found most remarkable. Yet, if you could borrow the book from your local library, use this chance to learn about this unusual and amazing artist and his time.

[Bill38silver · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a stunning, visual treat showcasing the work of a relatively unknown artist (at least to me). Born in 1836, Atkinson Grimshaw's early work displays the detail and landscaping beauty of the pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, and his work evolved into a series of themes: moonlight, dock scenes, suburban lanes, townscapes amongst others. There are 110 illustrations, mostly wondrous and full of atmosphere.

The commentary accompanying the pictures is crisp and does not lapse into academic language ( thankfully). This is an extremely well produced book by Phaidon which fills a gap in our understanding and appreciation of a fine artist. Sadly, most of his works are scattered in private hands so we are unlikely to see them up close and together in a public gallery. This book is an excellent substitute to see what we are missing.

[3Arvizulz3 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful.

[Melissa]

Areopagus

[Timothy Abbott · Rating 2 out of 5]

Huge disappointment. I dont want to look at black and white pictures of Grimshaw. What a travesty. What's the point? What a hollow book. Extremely disappointed.

[keereads · Rating 5 out of 5]

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