Modern Master
Theodore Major
Lancashire artist Theodore Major (Theo) is considered by many to be the last forgotten twentieth century master. Born into a family of mill workers in Wigan, Lancashire in 1908, this largely self-taught artist never moved far from his home town, resolutely turning his back on the established art world that he found so false and unfulfilling.
Refusing to be pigeonholed by subject matter or style, Theo marched to his own drum. During his lifetime, when galleries wanted to buy or exhibit his works, it had to be on his terms, if at all. Believing his art should be accessible to the general public, he rarely agreed to sell his paintings to private collectors, preferring to keep around 3,000 of them in his own crowded and ramshackle gallery, next to his cottage, where people could view them free of charge.
Theodore Major became noted for depictions of Wigan factories scenes, monsters, lonely seascapes, flowing nudes and monsters of war. His paintings leave a lasting impression on anyone who sees them. Sometimes dark and disturbing, other times lush and joyful, they live on in the mind long after you have walked away.
England's forgotten master Theodore Major
Discover a rarely seen side of Theodore Major, one of Britain’s most compelling and influential artists. This exceptional Collect Art exhibition brings together works on paper—drawings, sketches and prints - never previously shown, directly from the Major family estate.
For collectors and admirers alike, it’s a rare opportunity to encounter the works of an artist often called “England’s forgotten master”.
Collect Art: 29 The Cross, Lymm, Cheshire, WA13 0HR
Preview on Friday 6th November, 6–9pm
Wigan born
Theodore Major
Growing up in the Great Depression of the 1920s, poverty and hunger was never far away when Theo was growing up in Wigan. This small northern town, where he would spend his life, was immortalised in the George Orwell novel ‘The Road to Wigan Pier’, which is full of descriptions of Wigan life that Theo would have been all too familiar with:
“The train bore me away, through the monstrous scenery of slag-heaps, chimneys, piled scrap-iron, foul canals, paths of cindery mud criss-crossed by the prints of clogs.”
Industrial pollution shrouded the town in a grey fog, but despite the darkness around him, Theo saw light, drawing on any scrap of paper he could get hold of and always feeling himself to be an artist, however incongruous that might seem with the life he had been born into, and to say his work always reflected his sombre surroundings would be wrong.
Certainly, there are paintings of the people and industrial landscape of the area, in all its bleak beauty, but there are also brightly coloured flower paintings and many nudes that beautifully capture each models’ mood and character as well as their form. Writing in 1950, John Willett, art critic of the Manchester Guardian, described these paintings as: “…the quite exceptional vivid still-lives, flowers, and figure paintings, whose raw colours would wake up a Smith nude and put Van Gogh’s sunflowers in the shade.”
Artist Theodore Major
Exploring the life and work of Theodore Major
Throughout his career, Theo explored a wide range of techniques. In some paintings, colour is applied thickly and luxuriantly, in others, flatly and thinly. Some have a blurred, almost dreamed-like quality, others are vivid and frightening. Themes vary hugely, too, from industrial landscapes to the politically-inspired Monsters paintings. It is in part this variety that draws us endlessly to his work, eager to explore what we will find in the next painting.
> The man behind the brush
Featured articlesUpdates
EXHIBITIONS
His paintings have been enjoyed by the general public at many exhibitions, often near his home town of Leigh. New exhibition set to bring Theodore Major to a wider audience than ever before.
A FAMILY OF ARTISTS
Theo used a small front bedroom of his Appley Bridge home as his studio and the next door property as a store for his paintings, which he was not keen to part with. It has been said that he would have been bigger than Lowry if he had sold his paintings during his lifetime.
WALKING ON FIRE
The book features an in depth view of the man behind the paintings, his life, techniques and influence. It will include documents and facsimiles from his contemporaries, plus an extensive body of works from public and private collections.
“A very beautiful painter, much loved - it’s been a privilege and a pleasure bringing his work - his full body of work - to light.”
Martin Heaps, Owner of Collect Art, Lymm, Cheshire
Examining the techniques and themes of Theodore Major
“I wish to disturb and extend consciousness in the mind of the viewer.”
Theodore Major, 1964
1987 interview
In an interview with Geoffrey Shryhane, artist Theodore Major discusses his inspiration and style. Major is known for his bold and expressive paintings, which often feature industrial landscapes and working-class people. He credits his time working in a factory for his fascination with these subjects. Major also discusses his use of colour, stating that he believes colour has its own language that can evoke emotions in viewers. When asked about his artistic philosophy, Major declares that painting is a way to communicate and express oneself, and that true art comes from the heart.
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