The secret Lowry: Unskilled labourer who left 400 paintings will have work ...

The secret Lowry: Unskilled labourer who left 400 paintings will have work ...
The secret Lowry: Unskilled labourer who left 400 paintings will have work ...

An unskilled labourer who left a secret legacy of 70-years worth of artworks stacked in the cupboards at his terraced home is to have his work displayed at two of London's top galleries.

Ex-boxer Eric Tucker, whose works have been likened to LS Lowry, left school aged 14 without any qualifications and worked for the majority of his life as a builder in Warrington, Cheshire. 

But unbeknown to his family the painter created over 400 oil and watercolours in his front room, depicting 'the very heart of northern working-class life' in his hometown over a seven-decade period. 

Rather than offering them for sale or exhibition Eric kept his works out of public view - and instead stacked them around his unassuming end terraced property where he lived in for virtually all his life including his airing cupboard, in his shed and on top of his wardrobes.

The massive painting collection was only discovered by relatives after the bachelor, who lived alone and braved arthritis in his later years, passed away in July 2018 aged 86 and they went to clear out his home.

A scene by Tucker depicting a smokey bar. He often drank in local pubs and working men's clubs and his paintings were often based on barroom scenes

A scene by Tucker depicting a smokey bar. He often drank in local pubs and working men's clubs and his paintings were often based on barroom scenes

A scene of flat capped locals passing what appears to be a factory. The painter did a variety of portraits and landscapes

A scene of flat capped locals passing what appears to be a factory. The painter did a variety of portraits and landscapes

Most of the pictures feature Lowry-type scenes from smoky pubs, tumbledown terraced streets and factories and showing flat capped locals with their wives.  

There are also several paintings of clowns, following on from Eric's love of the circus as a child and portraits of his parents.

Now Alon Zakaim Fine Art and Connaught Brown in West London have teamed up to present 40 of the late artist's evocative scenes of working-class life in the industrial North in their collaborative exhibition, Eric Tucker: The Secret Painter.

Previously Eric's former home had temporarily turned into a free art gallery for one weekend only to display his paintings and they also went 9on display at Warrington Museum & Art Gallery followed in 2000. 

Ex-boxer Eric Tucker whose works have been likened to LS Lowry, left school aged 14 without any qualifications and worked as a builder in Warrington, Cheshire

His paintings were discovered in 2018 when he died aged 86

Ex-boxer Eric Tucker (left and right) whose works have been likened to LS Lowry, left school aged 14 without any qualifications and worked as a builder in Warrington, Cheshire. His paintings were discovered in 2018 when he died aged 86

A barroom scene depicts a rosey cheeked couple sharing a loving glance as another local enjoys a pint

A barroom scene depicts a rosey cheeked couple sharing a loving glance as another local enjoys a pint

A dynamic barroom scene from Tucker, with watercolour figures overlaying each other and a mix of perspectives

A dynamic barroom scene from Tucker, with watercolour figures overlaying each other and a mix of perspectives

A colourful oil depiction of an evening bar scene, with something clearly capturing the attention of a woman and man in the foreground

A colourful oil depiction of an evening bar scene, with something clearly capturing the attention of a woman and man in the foreground

Tucker's works have been likened to LS Lowry due to the slim figures and crowded street scenes

Tucker's works have been likened to LS Lowry due to the slim figures and crowded street scenes 

A painting by Tucker of a woman believed to be his mother, with a small passport photo tucked in the side of the frame

A painting by Tucker of a woman believed to be his mother, with a small passport photo tucked in the side of the frame

Eric Tucker's dining room, featuring a painting of his father, and a number of his personal effects

Eric Tucker's dining room, featuring a painting of his father, and a number of his personal effects

A selection of 14 of the artist's watercolours, offered for sale in an online

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