£10 painting by ‘matchstick men’ artist may fetch £1 million

A RARE work by the painter LS Lowry, known for his depictions of English working-class life, originally bought for 10 pounds is expected to fetch up to £1 million (R25 million) when it goes under the hammer, auctioneers said this week.

- STAFF REPORTER

The painting, Going To The Mill, was bought by literary editor Arthur Wallace in 1926 and has been in his family ever since.

Lowry, who died in 1976 at the age of 88, won fame for his paintings of industrial parts of northern England populated with his signature “matchstick” figures.

The work shows mill workers scurrying to work with tall factory chimneys belching out black smoke in the background.

Completed in 1925, it is believed to be one of the earliest sales made by Lowry in an unusual two-for-one deal the buyer negotiated directly with the artist.