Wigan Landscape

In 2008, Gallery Oldham held a retrospective of Theodore Major who was born in Wigan. This painting is a typical example of Major’s industrial landscapes. It is painted on board, like most of his works, allowing the artist to load successive layers of paint onto the surface. The effect is of a densely polluted sky, with a single break in the clouds illuminating a solitary figure outlined against a ‘flash’, or stretch of water, which catches the sudden burst of light. The solitary figure has a heroic quality and Major had an enormous respect for working people. Gallery Oldham held a centenary exhibition for Theodore Major in 2008. The vendor has donated another work by Major, 'Red Farm at Appley' to the collection with this acquisition.