Hello and welcome to my new 12-week blog series on the buildings in my paintings of Manchester and Salford to give more insight into their lives, and what was the inspiration behind painting them. So if you like art, LOVE Salford & Manchester and short historical stories, then read on!
Inspirational.
My inspiration for painting the buildings in my series is because I wanted to capture them as they are now to preserve their beauty. In years to come if they were ever to change then these paintings will be a reminder as to how I and many others remember them. They have so much meaning and because I’m proud of being from Salford and being a part of Manchester.
You may notice all of these are traditional buildings. I’ve not painted any glass or modern buildings because they’re all significantly older. I feel they’re all stronger and vibrant characters. They have so much history and I felt personally, they deserve a lot of recognition. I also really felt as though I needed to create a tribute to these long standing beautiful buildings that everybody passes by day to day. They’re here in our beautiful cities of Salford and Manchester and I wanted to show them off.
The reason I painted Manchester Town Hall is that it’s a pillar of the community, currently popular for hosting the main site of the German Christmas Markets and other popular festivities throughout the year.
People choose to hold significantly special events here including getting married and have done for many years. So it remains a special place in the hearts of many locals and tourists. One of the main uses of the Town Hall is to house local politics (but I’ll leave that for another time..!)
The Town Hall we see today was originally built (1868 - 1877) due to the Classical Town Hall on King Street being too small to house the ever expanding business of the Corporation. Costing around £1 Million to build, this was a very forward thinking and well-spent investment.
There was a competition and Alfred Waterhouse (1830 - 1905) won, all down to his ingenious planning. The site was an irregular triangle which had to fit The Great Hall which includes a glazed skylight and has the Mayors, Lord Mayors and Chairs of the Council’s names inscribed since Manchester received its Charter of Corporation in 1838. The Town Hall also had to house The Reception Room which contains an alabaster fireplace and bears the figure of Truth and Justice; the Lord Mayors Parlour containing portraits of public figures and paintings presented to the authority; The Banqueting Room boasting two beautiful wooden fireplaces; The Conference Hall originally the Council Chamber containing an Oak Screen, a canopy and a gallery along with Corporation Department Offices and a chamber for Council Meetings.
Waterhouse massively succeeded in combining ceremonial and workaday requirements needed for the wonderfully hard working and industrious City of Manchester.
Another beautiful room with easy public access is the Sculpture Hall Tea Room. With Chesterfields and clothed tables, fine tableware and surrounded by busts of all the inspirational and difference-making gentlemen including, conductor Sir Charles Hallé, Anti-corn Law League campaigner Richard Cobden and George Wilson. On that note, in the Sculpture Hall hallway, I did spot one female bust of female activist Erinma Bell!
The architecture is truly beautiful inside and out and the restorative work is still so pristine and well kept. It’s so magical and feels like you’re on a high budget film set about a struggling academic who strives to succeed.
This is down to the Thirteenth-century Gothic style, but in Waterhouse’s words a building “especially of the Nineteenth century”. The best innovation being a warm air heating system! The whole structure comprises of fourteen million bricks encased in Spinkwell Stone. The hall contains 4,500 yards of marble flooring along with the mosaic tiled floor containing an array of cotton flowers and infamous Manchester Worker Bees, another huge favourite amongst everyone who visits, locals and tourists alike. These commemorate Manchester’s involvement in the cotton trade and the whole of Manchester’s industry and was laid by highly skilled Venetian Craftsmen.
There are so many artistic opportunities in this building I’ve found, for taking photos, painting obviously, and sketching. I’ve been so inspired by this building so many times. I always stop and admire it whenever I pass.
In my painting, I set the scene for us with the wonderful exterior. Being the first beautiful scene we lay our eyes on. This is now a Grade One listed building and rightly so. It bears some very notable sculptures including Roman General Agricola over the main door who was the founder of Mamacium in 79 AD. Above him reside Henry III and Elizabeth I and at the apex of the main door, gable is a statue of St. George which I have captured in my painting.
To summarise, this is just one of the many beautiful, magical and gothic style buildings residing in our wonderful North West city we call Manchester and as previously mentioned, I wanted to pay tribute to this and the others in my series.
