The Best Reason I Can Give to Visit It Going to Sound Strange

From evictions to street parties to strikes, Lowry took the daily dramas of working-class life and found beauty in them. Adrian Searle welcomes a revealing and moving new show

Scrapbook‘s insight:

Last summer, Danny Boyle choreographed a wonderful spectacle which set the commencement of the games. A year on, I found myself cycling to the anticipated Lowry exhibition looking forward to see his work. You may wonder, hopefully not, what link there is between the two…but to me, both works portrayed a time in British history that splits my heart in two in a very similar language. 

As an architect, the slumming that emerged in response to the demand of the large factories, the lack of proper sanitation and consideration for the welfare of the workers and their families saddens me enormously. As a futuristic-world dreamer who read way too many Verne and Wells’ books, the world of possibilities that the industrial revolution opened up, filled me with glee.

Lowry’s exhibition though focuses in a third, more subtle, topic: the life within and around that industrial revolution. Within and around the city, the industrial revolution, the communities and the slums. 

As a foreigner, Lowry’s work becomes fascinating from the historical point of view. It shows portraits of daily life with a wonderfully truthful touch. The characters he paints are spontaneous, unaware (though I spotted a few who were clearly posing) and very much reflective of the times he reflected. the city is a backdrop (as it should) for life to take place.

The best reason I can give to visit it going to sound strange: I have never been passionate about football. ( Do not get me wrong, I know the rules of football, I simply do not feel a passion for any team or even the game.) Ever since I arrived in the UK, I have wondered what was it that made people so passionate about a particular bunch of guys playing with a ball on an enclosed field. Yesterday though,  in studying Lowry’s work, I understood its place in British life, and to me, that is an achievement on its own. 

See on www.guardian.co.uk