Exploding Paintings at The Lowry until 9th March

Exploding Paintings, the new exhibition at The Lowry, gives visitors the opportunity to take a fresh in-depth look at three of LS Lowry’s fascinating paintings.

The exhibition incorporates the insights of three experts, Salford residents and children from three local schools as it explores the paintings Portrait of Ann, Pit Tragedy and Industrial Landscape.

Portrait of Ann is considered by the late Shelley Rohde, journalist and Lowry’s biographer who collaborated with The Lowry. Who was Ann? What did she mean to Lowry? And why did this painting cause so much controversy when it was first shown to the public?

Pit Tragedy portrays the aftermath of an industrial accident. Lowry commented: “Accidents attract me… I’ve a queer mind, you know. What fascinates me is the people they attract, the patterns those people form and the atmosphere of tension when something has happened.” Social Historian Glen Atkinson looks at the working conditions in the pits in Lowry’s neighbourhood and whether he may have been concerned about the grim figures he depicted.

Industrial Landscape focuses on the industrial scene familiar in so many of Lowry’s works. Art historian Michael Howard examines the real and unreal aspects of the painting and asks what they can reveal about the artist.

There is also the opportunity to hear impressions of the works by local residents and past visitors, and to add your own opinions via an interactive, Big Brother-style booth.