26 May 2015

Who should be the new face of the £20 note?

British art lovers want the image of L.S. Lowry, the artist who recorded everyday life in the industrial North East with paintings of iconic ‘matchstick men’, on the new £20 note

The twenty pound note should features a picture of L.S. Lowry, the artist who recorded everyday life in the industrial North East, research has shown.

Mark Carney, Bank of England governor, has opened a contest to find the new face of the £20 note.

A two-month period of public nominations will seek a successor to Adam Smith, the Scottish economist, to find the new face of the banknote which will appear in three to five years.

The bank wants nominations of people who celebrate British achievement in the visual arts – but they cannot still be living.

According to research by the Affordable Arts Fair 21 per cent of Britons want Lowry, famous for his portraits of ‘matchstick men’ to be recognised. 19 per cent favour Constable and 9 per cent J.M.W. Turner.

Alexander McQueen, the fashion designer who committed suicide in 2010 is the nation’s fourth most popular choice.

Only one female artist, Barbara Hepworth, makes it on to the list with just 3 per cent of the vote.

If living artists were to be considered then Banksy, David Hockney and Damian Hirst would be the favourites.

L.S. Lowry – 21%

Born in 1887 he began to study art in his free evenings after leaving school in 1905. Despite an unusually long period as an art student in Manchester, Lowry regarded himself as self-taught. He drew inspiration from his surroundings, particularly Pendlebury, near Manchester, where he lived from 1909 to 1948.

From 1948 until his death in 1976 he lived in the same small, unmodernised house in Cheshire.

Constable – 19%

Born in Suffolk in 1776 he moved to London to be closer to prospective buyers. throughout his career he continued a nostalgic attachment to the villages of his boyhood and especially the views of the River Stour.

He is recognised as one of the most important members of the Romantic movement – but had less sucess for many years of his early career.

J.M.W. Turner – 9%

Joseph Mallord William Turner was born in 1775 in Covent Garden, London. A landscape painter he is famous for the fluid, poetic nature of his landscapes. So much so he is seen as the predecessor to the impressionist movement.

He died in Chelsea in 1851. He was recently portrayed by Timothy Sopall in the film Mr Turner.

Alexander McQueen – 8%

Lee Alexander McQueen was born in the East End of London in 1969. He left school at 16 and became an apprentice on Savile Row. He later became chief designer at Givenchy and creative director at Gucci.

He was named British designer of the year four times after 1996. McQueen died aged 40 in 2010.

William Morris – 8%

An English textile designer, poet, novelist and socialist activist. He was a major contibuter to the arts and crafts movement.

He was an important figure in the emergence of socialism in Britain, founding the Socialist League in 1884. He died in 1896.

William Blake – 7%

A printmaker, painter and poet he began writing from the age of 10. He studied engraving and found a great love of gothic art.

Blake is generally understood to have been largely misunderstood throughout his life but has found vast numbers of admirers since his death in 1827.

<!–

–>

8. Thomas Gainsborough – 4%

One of the most popular artists of the 18th century. He made must of his money through painting portraits but his passion lay in landscapes.

He died in 1788.

9. Francis Bacon – 4%

Born in Dublin in 1909 to parents of English decent he is known for his graphic style and distorted images of people.

Margaret Thatcher described him as “that man who paints those dreadful paintings”. He died in 1992.

10. Barbara Hepworth- 3%

Born in Wakefiled in 1903 she trained at the Leeds School of Art and the Royal College of Art. With Henry Moore she became a leading figure in the ‘new movement’ of direct carving.

Althouhg some of Hepworth’s career was dogged by comparisons with Moore, two retrospectives – in Wakefield (1951) and London (Whitechapel 1954) – and Read’s monograph (1952) confirmed her post-war reputation. She died in 1975,