Trevor Grimshaw
Encyclopedia
Trevor Grimshaw was an English artist.
in 1947 and studied at the Stockport College of Art from 1963 to 1968. He developed a unique style working in oils, charcoal and graphite to produce atmospheric, stylised images of the Northern industrial landscape, mainly in monochrome.
As a child he had a passion for steam engines and trainspotting, which continued into adulthood; for example he made the journey to the scrapyard at Barry in South Wales which held hundreds of steam locomotives awaiting scrapping, and made a personal photographic record of the occasion. Much of his work features steam engines.
He spent much of his working career at Stowe Bowden Ltd., a leading Manchester advertising agency headed by Jim Reece, and latterly part of the Royds Advertising Group of Agencies. One of Stowe Bowden’s satellite agencies was an office in the Isle of Man (the Manchester agency handled the Isle of Man Tourist Board account) and Grimshaw enjoyed the advantages of this link. Amongst the advertising accounts he worked on as studio manager were Norweb (North Western Electricity Board), Primula Cheese (Kavli Foods), Warrington New Town Development Corporation, and Manchester Airport. Grimshaw’s particular agency skill was in typography and graphics.
Grimshaw exhibited widely in the UK (including at the Royal Scottish Academy and the Royal Academy in the 1970s) and in the US and Germany. His work was included in the private collections of L.S. Lowry, Edward Heath
, the Warburton (Bread) Family and Gerald Kaufman
MP., and he is represented in a number of public collections, including The Tate Gallery, Salford Art Gallery, Stockport Art Gallery and Bury Art Gallery. He illustrated The Singing Street, a book of poems by Mike Harding
, and executed limited edition lithographs for Christie's Contemporary Art. He also did the title slide images for the early BBC Great Railway Journeys of the World series. Artist Geoffrey Key described Grimshaw, a long time friend, as "one of the most important graphic artists working in the north during the last half of the 20th century".
While Grimshaw is most celebrated for his black and grey graphite portrayal of post-industrial Britain (e.g. canals, cityscapes, viaducts, steam trains) his portfolio included diverse other subjects such as megaliths, Stonehenge, quarries in North Wales, motorway construction and the solstices (often in combination). Colour treatment was largely reserved for Cheshire landscapes, and pictures of Clarice Cliff ceramics.
In 1973 the North West Arts Association published Townscape: Trevor Grimshaw, a book reproducing 30 drawings.
Harry Rutherford, a former pupil of Sickert, lived locally in Hyde when he opened a School of Art for a short period in Manchester. Rutherford had an impressive commercial career, and was for a time part of the St Ives Group (where he exhibited) and had a studio in Camden. German bombing destroyed much of Rutherford’s work. Rutherford and his work were well known to Grimshaw who was instrumental in helping Rutherford with his later exhibitions.
, Moravia, Czech Republic, his 50th show in his 50th year. In 2004 a major retrospective exhibition was held at Stockport Art Gallery.
Life and work
Grimshaw was born in Hyde, CheshireHyde, Greater Manchester
Hyde is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2001 census, the town had a population of 31,253. Historically part of Cheshire, it is northeast of Stockport, west of Glossop and east of Manchester....
in 1947 and studied at the Stockport College of Art from 1963 to 1968. He developed a unique style working in oils, charcoal and graphite to produce atmospheric, stylised images of the Northern industrial landscape, mainly in monochrome.
As a child he had a passion for steam engines and trainspotting, which continued into adulthood; for example he made the journey to the scrapyard at Barry in South Wales which held hundreds of steam locomotives awaiting scrapping, and made a personal photographic record of the occasion. Much of his work features steam engines.
He spent much of his working career at Stowe Bowden Ltd., a leading Manchester advertising agency headed by Jim Reece, and latterly part of the Royds Advertising Group of Agencies. One of Stowe Bowden’s satellite agencies was an office in the Isle of Man (the Manchester agency handled the Isle of Man Tourist Board account) and Grimshaw enjoyed the advantages of this link. Amongst the advertising accounts he worked on as studio manager were Norweb (North Western Electricity Board), Primula Cheese (Kavli Foods), Warrington New Town Development Corporation, and Manchester Airport. Grimshaw’s particular agency skill was in typography and graphics.
Grimshaw exhibited widely in the UK (including at the Royal Scottish Academy and the Royal Academy in the 1970s) and in the US and Germany. His work was included in the private collections of L.S. Lowry, Edward Heath
Edward Heath
Sir Edward Richard George "Ted" Heath, KG, MBE, PC was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and as Leader of the Conservative Party ....
, the Warburton (Bread) Family and Gerald Kaufman
Gerald Kaufman
Sir Gerald Bernard Kaufman is a British Labour Party politician, who has been a Member of Parliament since 1970, first for Manchester Ardwick, and then subsequently for Manchester Gorton...
MP., and he is represented in a number of public collections, including The Tate Gallery, Salford Art Gallery, Stockport Art Gallery and Bury Art Gallery. He illustrated The Singing Street, a book of poems by Mike Harding
Mike Harding
Mike Harding is an English singer, songwriter, comedian, author, poet and broadcaster. He is known as 'The Rochdale Cowboy' after one of his hit records...
, and executed limited edition lithographs for Christie's Contemporary Art. He also did the title slide images for the early BBC Great Railway Journeys of the World series. Artist Geoffrey Key described Grimshaw, a long time friend, as "one of the most important graphic artists working in the north during the last half of the 20th century".
While Grimshaw is most celebrated for his black and grey graphite portrayal of post-industrial Britain (e.g. canals, cityscapes, viaducts, steam trains) his portfolio included diverse other subjects such as megaliths, Stonehenge, quarries in North Wales, motorway construction and the solstices (often in combination). Colour treatment was largely reserved for Cheshire landscapes, and pictures of Clarice Cliff ceramics.
In 1973 the North West Arts Association published Townscape: Trevor Grimshaw, a book reproducing 30 drawings.
Links with other artists
L.S.Lowry attended one of his earliest exhibitions, buying three of his major early works to hang alongside his small collection of Pre-Raphaelites. Grimshaw became a regular visitor to Lowry’s home in Mottram and could be described as one of Lowery’s appointed successors in portraying the north.Harry Rutherford, a former pupil of Sickert, lived locally in Hyde when he opened a School of Art for a short period in Manchester. Rutherford had an impressive commercial career, and was for a time part of the St Ives Group (where he exhibited) and had a studio in Camden. German bombing destroyed much of Rutherford’s work. Rutherford and his work were well known to Grimshaw who was instrumental in helping Rutherford with his later exhibitions.
Final exhibitions and death
By the time of his death, in a house fire in 2001, Grimshaw had become an alcoholic and a reclusive figure. He held his last show in 1997 in the County Museum and Art Gallery at ProstejovProstejov
Prostějov is a city in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. Today the city is known for its fashion industry and special military forces based there....
, Moravia, Czech Republic, his 50th show in his 50th year. In 2004 a major retrospective exhibition was held at Stockport Art Gallery.
External links
- Review of 2004 exhibition http://aidan.co.uk/article12.htm