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A captivating exhibition will shed new light on the life and work of renowned Leeds artist John Atkinson Grimshaw<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n Grimshaw\u2019s \u2018moonlights\u2019, as the artist called them, including depictions of Boar Lane and Park Row, will feature in Don\u2019t Let\u2019s Ask For the Moon: Nocturnes and Atkinson Grimshaw, which opens at Leeds Art Gallery this November.<\/p>\n The exhibition shows Grimshaw to be an artist of striking and unexpected modernity. His nocturnes, or works inspired by the night, such as \u2018Nightfall down the Thames\u2019 (1880) and \u2018Reflections on the Aire: On Strike\u2019 (1879) \u2013 acquired by the Gallery 125 years apart \u2013 are among the 17 paintings, watercolours and drawings from the Leeds Art Gallery collection to be on display.<\/p>\n They reveal Grimshaw\u2019s deep understanding of urban and city settings that, through the depiction of new types of artificial lighting together with moonlight, impacted on a poetic imagination. His work led American avant-garde painter James McNeill Whistler to declare: \u201cI thought I had invented the Nocturne until I saw Grimmy\u2019s moonlights\u201d.<\/p>\n These celebrated 19th century nocturne works will be displayed alongside those of four contemporary painters \u2013 Elizabeth Magill, Selma Makela, Judith Tucker and Joanna Whittle \u2013 as well as neon and photographic works by Roger Palmer \u2013 to help re-position Grimshaw as a painter of modernity against the hold of Victorian nostalgia.<\/p>\n Born in a back-to-back on Park Street in 1836, Grimshaw was, remarkably, a largely self-taught artist, inspired initially by the Pre-Raphaelites, but who used an interest in photography to realise his own worldview of the effects of light and shadow.<\/p>\n Turning his back on a steady job at Great Northern Railway to pursue painting, commercial success saw Grimshaw move to Headingley. He went on to become one of the most renowned artists of the Victorian era and within a few short years moved to a rambling, baronial old hall at Knostrop.<\/p>\n A small, jewel-like painting, \u2018Knostrop Cut, Leeds, Sunday Night\u2019 from 1893, the final year of the artist\u2019s life, brings an elegiac note to this show that celebrates the achievements of one of the city\u2019s greatest artists.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t Let\u2019s Ask For the Moon has also inspired two community-focussed projects \u2013 We Bathe in Starlight: The Arts and Minds Poetry Project, and Pyramid View On\u2026John Atkinson Grimshaw \u2013 which will both be on display for the duration of the main exhibition.<\/p>\n Councillor Salma Arif, Leeds City Council\u2019s executive member for adult social care, active lifestyles and culture said:<\/p>\n \u201cJohn Atkinson Grimshaw\u2019s works are recognised around the world for both their beauty and the unique style and ingenuity of their creator and it\u2019s wonderful to see a Leeds-born artist celebrated in this exciting exhibition.<\/p>\n \u201cThe collection at Leeds Art Gallery is truly world class and having street scenes of Leeds on display alongside work by so many prestigious artists past and present also brings home what an important cultural destination Leeds is.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Jane Bhoyroo, Principal Keeper at Leeds Art Gallery, added:<\/p>\n \u201cThe exhibition also serves to honour our former colleague Alex Roberston, who was largely responsible for revitalising the reputation of Atkinson Grimshaw from the late 1970s. He sadly passed away just less than a year ago, and we hope the exhibition will be a fitting tribute to his long endeavour.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u2018Don\u2019t Let\u2019s Ask For the Moo: Nocturnes and Atkinson Grimshaw opens at Leeds Art Gallery on Friday 14 November and runs until 19 April 2026. Leeds Art Gallery is a Give What You Can gallery.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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