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A Stove
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? The Eardley Estate

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A Stove about 1955
  • Scottish Art
Working at her studio in Townhead in Glasgow, Eardley chose to depict subjects which were typical of the working-class neighbourhood. In addition to her many works showing children from the area, Eardley also depicted run-down tenement buildings and sparsely furnished interiors. Such subject matter parallels that of the `Kitchen Sink School? of realism, active in London at the same time. However, paintings such as A Stove also show the influence of Van Gogh, Vuillard and nineteenth century French realist painters, whose art Eardley would have been able to see at Glasgow?s Kelvingrove Art Gallery. Although devoid of people, this sombre representation of the corner of a kitchen suggests that its inhabitants lead a simple and meagre existence.

Glossary Open

Kitchen Sink School

A group of British painters active in the 1950s, named after an article of 1954 by the critic David Sylvester for their depiction of scenes of everyday life. They depicted working class subjects, particularly interior scenes and still-lifes of domestic objects. While not a unified or overtly political group, their work was a reaction against the elitism of Abstract Art in favour of social realism.

Realism

Used generally for art that attempts to represent things as they appear. It specifically refers to a mid-19th century movement in France, led by Gustave Courbet, that rejected the sometimes obscure subject matter of academic painting in favour of more accessible scenes of everyday life.

Kitchen Sink School, Realism

Details

  • Acc. No. GMA 2801
  • Medium Oil on canvas laid on hardboard
  • Size 95.50 x 79.00 cm
  • Credit Purchased 1984

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Scottish Art