LS Lowry Biography and Comprehension (KS2)

LS Lowry biography and comprehension (KS2)

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LS Lowry – biography and comprehension Laurence Stephen Lowry was a famous English painter. He was born on 1 November 1887, during the Victorian age. Lowry was born in a town in Manchester called Stretford.

Early life As a child, Lowry and his family lived in a more rural area outside the city of Manchester. Growing ©Smabs Sputzer (1956-2017), 2008, https://flic.kr/p/5DRfS2 up, Lowry did not have many friends, was unpopular at school and was not close to his parents. It was an unhappy and lonely childhood. In 1909, Lowry and his parents moved to a more urban area, called Pendlebury, which had many factories and textiles mills. At first, Lowry did not like his new home, as he thought it was too busy and full of smoke. However, the more time he spent in the city, the more he grew to love it. The hustle and bustle of the people and the industrial landscape around him inspired Lowry to paint the activity he saw on a daily basis.

Lowry’s art As a child, Lowry had taken art classes, and after discovering his passion for painting the area and people around him, he went on to study at the Manchester School of Art and then Salford Royal Technical College in 1915. Although one of Lowry’s paintings of London sold for over £5 million in 2011, when he first started painting, Lowry did not make enough money and so had to take on another job. He became a rent collector, but

©Smabs Sputzer (1956-2017), 2013, https://flic.kr/p/ednqwp kept this job secret, so that nobody knew he wasn’t making enough money as an artist. After a positive newspaper review, Lowry became more well- known and his artwork started selling for more money. Lowry’s artwork was different from that of other artists in the same period. His paintings showed life in an industrial textile town, and the figures in his paintings were called ‘matchstick men’, because of the way he painted them. Some of his most famous paintings include: Industrial Landscape, Going to the Match, Coming from the Mill, The

Viaduct and The Football Match.

Later life

During his life, Lowry was offered five honours from the Queen, including a knighthood, and rejected them all. As he neared retirement, Lowry spent more time at the seaside and many of his later paintings depict coastal scenes. In 1976 Lowry died from pneumonia at the age of 88. His paintings continue to inspire artists all over the world.

Fascinating facts

 During the Second World War, Lowry was an official war artist (from 1943-1945) and painted different aspects of the war.  In 1953, he was given the honour of being the Official Artist of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. He was one of a select few artists who had been chosen to create a painting to commemorate the special day.  Lowry claims that he only ever used five colours: vermillion, black, white, Prussian blue and yellow ochre.  There is an art gallery, called The Lowry, in Salford Quays which is named after him.  Lowry was passionate about football and he was a keen supporter of Manchester City Football Club.  At least two well-known songs have been inspired by the work of LS Lowry. They are Pictures of Matchstick Men by Status Quo and Matchstalk Men and Matchstalk Cats and Dogs by Brian and Michael.

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LS Lowry biography – comprehension

Read the biography carefully and answer the following questions. 1. What do the initials LS stand for? ......

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2. Where was he born? Where did his family move to? ......

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3. What do the words ‘rural’ and ‘urban’ mean? ......

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4. Where did Lowry study? ......

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5. Why is the art gallery The Lowry located in Salford Quays, Manchester? ......

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6. What honour was bestowed upon Lowry after the Second World War? ......

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7. Can you name one of his paintings? ......

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8. What was Lowry’s childhood like? Can you think of an adjective to describe his experience? ......

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9. When did Lowry start to become more well-known as an artist? ......

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10. How do we know Lowry’s paintings are popular? ......

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LS Lowry comprehension – answers

1. What do the initials LS stand for? The initials stand for Laurence Stephen. 2. Where was he born? Where did his family move to? He was born in a town called Stretford in Manchester, but his family moved to Pendlebury. 3. What do the words ‘rural’ and ‘urban’ mean? ‘Rural’ means places that are not towns or cities, they are usually villages in the countryside, where buildings and people are not close together. ‘Urban’ is the opposite of rural and means located in a city or a more densely populated area. 4. Where did Lowry study? Lowry studied at the Manchester School of Art and Salford Royal Technical College. 5. Why is the art gallery ‘The Lowry’ located in Salford Quays, Manchester? ‘The Lowry’ is located in Salford Quays because not only was Lowry born in Manchester and studied at Salford, but many of his paintings were of the industrial landscape in the Manchester area. 6. What honour was bestowed upon Lowry after the Second World War? Lowry was the Official Artist of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953. 7. Can you name one of his paintings? Some of his most famous paintings include: Industrial Landscape, Going to the Match, Coming from the Mill, The Viaduct and The Football Match. 8. What was Lowry’s childhood like? Can you think of an adjective to describe his experience? Lowry had an unhappy childhood, as he didn’t have many friends and was not close to his parents. It must have been quite lonely. 9. When did Lowry start to become more well-known as an artist? After initially struggling to make money from his artwork, a positive newspaper review led to Lowry becoming more well-known. 10. How do we know Lowry’s paintings are popular? Yes, at least two songs have been written about Lowry’s paintings (Pictures of Matchstick Men by Status Quo and Matchstalk Men and Matchstalk Cats and Dogs by Brian and Michael) and in 2011 one of his paintings of London sold for over £5million.

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LS Lowry – writing task

Imagine you are the newspaper reporter who discovered Lowry’s paintings in the 1930s. They are very different to the artwork most painters of the time created and you think Lowry is doing something new and exciting.

Write a newspaper report based on what you have seen.

Name: ...... Date: ...... LS Lowry – art task

Like many artists, Lowry used to make observational sketches of the world around him, but then when he used these sketches to create a painting, he included extra people or places from his imagination. He called these paintings dreamscapes.

Create your own dreamscape!

Start by thinking of a place where your painting can be set – the school playground, a park, the street where your house is, the seaside etc.

Now decide who will be in your painting – will there be lots of people or just a few? What are they doing?

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LS Lowry – drama task

In small groups, choose one of Lowry’s paintings and create a freeze-frame of the image you see. You may choose the painting shown below entitled Going to Work.

Discuss what might happen next and act out the scene in your group.