John Atkinson Grimshaw

John Atkinson Grimshaw painted the Victorian city by moonlight: wet streets shining under gas lamps, docks full of masts, and suburban lanes lined with bare trees against a glowing sky. His paintings are sharply focused and full of atmosphere, and the balance of warm lamplight and cold moonlight is instantly recognisable.

He was born in Leeds in 1836 and worked as a railway clerk before teaching himself to paint, leaving the job in 1861. He painted the docks of London, Liverpool, Hull and Glasgow, and his Leeds scenes such as Boar Lane (1881) are among his best known. He died in Leeds in 1893.

A Wintry Moon and Autumn Morning are typical: bare branches, damp light and a lone figure on the road.