Harry Rutherford

Harry Rutherford (1903–1985) was a British painter who is regarded as one of the most important painters of the "Northern School",[1] a group led by L. S. Lowry which depicted the post-industrial changes around North West England. He was the first visual artist to present a television programme, and later became President of the Manchester Academy of Fine Arts.[2]

Harry Rutherford
Born1903
Denton, Manchester
Died1985
Manchester
NationalityBritish
Education
MovementNorthern School

Background

He was born at Market Street, Denton, Manchester, the youngest of four sons of hat trimmer William Rutherford and his wife Mary Swindells.[Note 1]

He left school at 14, but while still there attended the Hyde School of Art and continued his studies at the Manchester School of Art under Pierre Adolphe Valette; L. S. Lowry was among his fellow pupils. In 1925, Rutherford was the first and youngest pupil to enrol in Walter Sickert's new school of art in Manchester. His association with Sickert was lifelong, and Sickert referred to Rutherford as "my intellectual heir and successor."[4]

Career

In 1931, Rutherford moved to London. The new medium of television provided opportunities for him to exploit his ability to sketch rapidly. In 1936–39 and in 1946, Rutherford presented the BBC Television light entertainment programme Cabaret Cartoons,[Note 2] in which he drew variety artists as they performed their acts.[5] In 1950–56, he starred in his own programme, Sketchbook.[6][7][8]

While exhibiting in numerous London galleries, he was invited to hold a series of exhibitions in Borneo in 1957, becoming the first western artist to do so.

He returned to Hyde in the late 1950s to 17 Nelson Street and was elected President of the Manchester Academy of Fine Arts. In his later years, he taught at the Regional College of Art in Manchester, where his pupils included the painter Geoffrey Key.

Collections

Rutherford's work is in several public art collections including: The Royal Academy, Manchester Art Gallery, The Atkinson Gallery, Gallery Oldham and Rochdale Art Gallery.[9]

In 2008 Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council opened an exhibition space in Hyde Library to display permanently the town's collection of Rutherford works.[10] The Rutherford Gallery, celebrates the life of the artist.

There are two Blue Plaques for Rutherford in Hyde. One is on his former home 17 Nelson Street, keeping a studio next door and there is one on Hyde Town Hall.[11]

Notes
  1. Hat manufacture was a local industry based in Hyde and Stockport. Rutherford's family had moved to Hyde in 1905.[3]
  2. BBC Television suspended broadcasting on 1 September 1939 with the outbreak of World War II, and only resumed in June 1946.

References
  1. Davies, Peter (1989) "A Northern School" Redcliffe Press. ISBN 0-948265-73-6. pages 6,26,76,80,92,103,106,110,11,134,140,145
  2. "History of Mafa: Past Presidents | Manchester Academy of Fine Arts". Archived from the original on 2 March 2016. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  3. Capes Dunn: Harry Rutherford Studio of Works Catalogue 2011
  4. Davies, Peter (1989) "A Northern School" Redcliffe Press. ISBN 0-948265-73-6.Page 76.
  5. Harry Rutherford at IMDb
  6. "For the Children: Harry Rutherford's Festival Sketchbook - BBC Television - 4 May 1951 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 26 March 2017.
  7. "About Harry Rutherford". www.tameside.gov.uk. Retrieved 26 March 2017.
  8. Hyde's unsung hero (25 September 2008). "Manchester - People - Hyde's unsung hero". BBC. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  9. "Harry Rutherford". Art UK. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  10. "The Rutherford Gallery". Tameside.gov.uk. 9 January 2012. Archived from the original on 20 March 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  11. "A Tribute to Harry Rutherford 1903 - 1985". Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council. Retrieved 19 October 2021.

Bibliography
  • The Northern School: A Reappraisal, Martin Regan, 2016 978-1527203204
  • Centre Stage, The Art of Harry Rutherford, Stephen Whittle, Tameside Museums, 2013
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