A painting by an artist dubbed “Liverpool’s Lowry” is expected to fetch a five-figure sum when it goes under the hammer in Perth.
Gee up, Ginger by Brian Shields, better known as “Braaq”, has never before come up for auction, having been bought direct from the artist in a 1978 exhibition in Cumbria.
It closely resembles LS Lowry’s famous matchstick men paintings, with Shields also placing his figures in an industrial landscape.
The artist has also placed himself within the painting as a little boy wearing a stripey top, a known trademark.
The acrylic on wood painting is expected to fetch up to £20,000 when it goes under the hammer at Lindsay Burns Auctioneers on Tuesday.
“Shields is sometimes referred to as Liverpool’s Lowry”, said auctioneer Nick Burns. “He was born in Liverpool and a lot of his images feature the industrial landscapes.
“He also painted himself into is images as a boy wearing a stripey top – here he is on the sledge.
“This painting has never come up for auction before – it was bought at an exhibition in 1978 for £650 by the current owner’s father and it has hung in the family home ever since.
“Our estimate is for upwards of £15,000.”
Nick added that the signature on the piece has a poignant tale. Alongside “Braaq” and the date is the name “Ann”.
“A lot of his paintings have his sister’s name alongside the signature as a tribute, because she died very young,” he said. “He also died quite young – he was only 46.”
The son of an impoverished Liverpool docker, Shields was the youngest of 12 children.
The black and white striped jumper featured in his self-portraits was the only new piece of clothing he could remember receiving.
He acquired the nickname “Braaq” – a nod to French artist Georges Braque – in his school days on account of his artistic talent but initially trained as a chef in Yorkshire.
He held his first exhibition in 1974 and in 1977 he was invited to hold four exhibitions in London. At this time was described as “one of the six most successful artists in England.”
He died of a brain haemorrhage in 1997.
