LONDON.- Thompson’s Gallery welcomes Simeon Stafford back to the gallery for this comprehensive solo show of recent works.

Stafford’s paintings share a visual simplicity with Lowry’s iconic northern street scenes but, his reference points are far removed from the Industrial backgrounds of where they both grew up.

Stafford relocated to Cornwall where he was influenced by St Ives painters such as Sir Terry Frost and Patrick Heron. Stafford works can be seen as the confluence of Lowry’s simple and naïve approach coupled with the vibrancy and jocularity of Cornish artists. His new paintings depict a whole range of subject matter from familiar scenes to fresh new ones as he takes you from the metropolis to coast and onwards.

Simeon Stafford was born in 1956, in Dukinfield, a small town in the environs of Manchester. It was here, as the story goes, that a young Simeon Stafford was encouraged to pursue a career in painting through a chance meeting with renowned northern painter L.S. Lowry.

While Stafford’s paintings share a visual simplicity with Lowry’s iconic northern street scenes, his reference points are far removed from the industrial backgrounds of where they both grew up. Conversely, his relocation to Cornwall gave Stafford’s work a defining, alternative mood – both liberated from the muggy northern towns whilst also painting in recognition of Lowry’s bustling crowds. Furthermore, it was in Cornwall where he met and was influenced by notable St. Ives painters such as Sir Terry Frost and Patrick Heron. Stafford’s work can be seen as the confluence of Lowry’s simple and naive approach coupled with the vibrancy and jocularity of the Cornish artists.

Stafford’s career started early, aged 14 he won the Robert Owen Schools Award for Art and also the Manchester Evening News’s Portrait Award. Throughout 1972 and 1973 Stafford studied art at Hyde College. His tutor was Christine Kendall, the wife of the art historian Richard Kendall. In 1974 Stafford became a professional artist and exhibited his work in mixed exhibitions throughout the North of England and London. Stafford continues to have successful exhibitions throughout the U.K and has exhibited at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. Private collections include Her Majesty the Queen and Tony Blair.