In the meantime, we're thrilled to unveil Joe's latest masterpiece, 'The Heron at Sandersons Weir.' Describing the inspiration behind the artwork, Joe muses,
'Every now and then, life presents us artists with a gift. A couple of weeks ago, as I strolled along the weir, there he was— a majestic heron, scoping out his lunch. I wish I could portray the sound and smell as well as the sights of that day. It was a special moment, now beautifully captured on canvas.'
Can you guess this Christmas depiction?
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After being laden down with an apron, hat and other Hendo's goodies, Joe was back on the boat to add the finishing touches to his latest painting, a 30x40" homage to one of his favourite films from the early 1950's. More will be revealed next week!
If you would like to celebrate 75 years of our NHS and raise funds for the charity, we still have a few limited edition prints of the Henderson’s label available, all proceeds going to the charity. We are also accepting offers on the original painting with 20% of the sale going to charity, too.
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The King Fisher
Joe has just completed his latest work, "The Kingfisher", which will feature in his forthcoming exhibition along with many other small studies that capture a moment in time in various locations around Sheffield. Whilst we're still procuring the right venue, we hope for the exhibition to take place this Summer.
When he decides to take a break from painting, which is not very often, he doesn’t sit idle. He does sit, but at the local cinema, taking in one, two or on occasion even three films in a row.
Another of Joe's pastimes is model making, especially ships and planes. Here is his latest, a model of the Consolidated PBY Catalina.
A Cornet Solo. Joe's unfinished symphony: finished at last
For a couple of years it sat in the corner sullenly like a naughty child, now rediscovered and completed by Joe.
Originally intended to be left unfinished, Joe decided to 'complete' the painting after some gentle persuasion from fans, who, have suggested the painting would look a little better with the iconic university building and an equally iconic Joe Scarborough sky behind it.
Buy the original here
Here is the unfinished version that Joe had originally started which is still a corking painting but as you can see now it looks even better!
]]>This week we thought we would share a little info about one of Joe's painting that recently sold at auction, as no prints have ever been made of this painting so it is seldom see by Joe's fans.
This fantastic Joe, entitled "Conrada of the Goose", featuring the Palio di Siena horse race crashing through the streets of Piazza del Campo, Siena, Italy.
The title of the painting comes from Contrada di Oca (Goose), one of the seventeen districts of Siena that competes in the race.
"Siena in Northern Italy is still steeped on medieval tradition. None being more than that of the Contradas. The city is walled town and its many gates are, or were, defended by the local clan or Contradi. The equivalent of todays local councils, but once born into a certain clan - you were in forever!
The large building at the top of the of the painting is in the Salimbeni Square, here a young boy is being baptised into the "Contrada del Orca"(sic). His future life will revolve around this area. Working as a waiter by day in the many cafes, he return home at night to where, in the bottom of the picture, amongst the many narrow streets, he will see the flag & banner makers, the armourers working. His evenings. when not courting, will be spent perfecting his flag throwing skills or the forthcoming "Il Palio".
The yearly highlight of Sienna when all rival Contrade compete in a violent horse race. And in the centre of the picture, the horses appear from the Tuscan Hills - only one will be chose. And one day perhaps, young Paulo will ride for the honour of the "Contrada del Orca".
- Joe Scarborough, 1996
To eager young ears his biography he told ,
In stark detail the motivations unfold .
Down, down, the cage descends the pit shaft hole,
Where miners eke out a living clawing coal .
Banter tries to lift that pit bottom feeling
Where life’s on hold neath a propped rock ceiling.
Ever present is a nagging elsewhere lust ,
But all is smothered by thick monochrome dust .
The shift end senses queue in despair
Longing for that first gasp of sunlit air .
Perceptive eyes ,rimmed with coal dust eyeliner ,
Give food for thought for one surfacing miner .
He paints rich street scenes in dancing colour ,
With verdant blessings from nature’s mother .
Grist to the mill and his creative soul
But thanks in part to that ironic hole .
His original talent can vividly see
Our bustling lives as they used to be.
Moment and mood receive a warm embrace ,
With vibrant memories in nostalgic heart space.
Some folk rush by, others ponder and care ,
Portraying Yorkshire life with flamboyant flair .
Following his star, ambition in safe harbour ,
He found himself, take a bow Joe Scarborough .
John R Evans
Own a Pitt Street Print - Visit Here
]]>A new world auction record for Yorkshire artist Joe Scarborough was set in the Modern and Contemporary Art Sale at Tennants Auctioneers, North Yorkshire on 25th June, when ‘Whitby Regatta’ sold for £18,000 (plus buyer’s premium), more than doubling the previous record for the artist.
Joe Scarborough, who was born in 1938, is much loved for his colourful and humorous depictions of everyday life in his hometown of Sheffield and around Yorkshire. He first discovered painting whilst working in a South Yorkshire colliery, where his vividly colourful and life-filled paintings provided a much-needed antidote to working underground. After leaving the mines to pursue a career as an artist, Scarborough developed his distinctive and instantly recognisable style, and his paintings can be found in private and public collections around the world. Two further paintings by the artist in the sale sold well, too, with ‘Working Men’s Club’ selling for £1,200, and ‘Waiting for Paytime’ selling for £700.
Throughout the sale keen bidding was seen for the strong selection of Northern Art on offer. Good prices were achieved for ‘It’s Bloody Freezing’ by Brian ‘Braaq’ Shields (1951-1997), which sold for £16,000 and his ‘Figures Outside a School’, which sold for £4,000. Two distinctive drawings by County Durham mining artist Norman Cornish (1919-2014) sold well too, with ‘Man at the Bar’ selling for £1,400, and ‘Man Smoking’ selling for £1,300. Further notable results were seen for Leeds artist Stuart Walton’s (b.1933) ‘Great Northern Street, Morley’ and ‘Street in Leeds’, which both sold above top estimate for £1,400, and a much-admired Peter Brook (1927-2009) painting, ‘Working Dog Resting’ sold for £4,200.
Elsewhere in the sale, a bronze sculpture by Philip Jackson (b.1942), ‘Palestrina’s Pavan’ sold well at £7,000. Jackson is a contemporary sculptor in the figurative tradition, known for his figures inspired by Venice, such as the present lot.
The sale achieved at total hammer price of £175,630 for 146 lots and an 88% sold rate.
See the original post here
Buy a print of it here
]]>In order to complete his latest huge commission for The Olympic Legacy Park, Joe needed to move to a studio with enough space for him to reach the bottom of the Canvas. The lovely folk at OVO, who's office is right next to Joes boat, offered some space in their building for a makeshift studio where the canvas could be elevated.
The move, however, was delayed by three days by storm after storm after storm which would have made moving the canvas the 200 yards along the Quays a little hazardous.
This morning the great man and the canvas were eventually ensconced in his new temporary studio. I informed Rebecca, the MD, that he expected to be there for a couple of weeks but warned her if they kept feeding, watering and looking after him in their usual generous fashion, it could take him three months.
]]>Most folk in their 80s tend to slow down a bit, put their feet up and relax.
Not Joe.
Against the backdrop of completing the commission for the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, his work and social life are vibrant.
Along with his weekly signing sessions, he spends time coordinating his contributions and donations for charities and schools. Earlier this month he was one of the guests of honour at the Black Diamond Charity Ball at Wentworth Woodhouse.
This week he is being interviewed by the Star for a special pull out edition probably for this Saturday. He will visit two local schools who are using his art in their curriculum, in November. As Ambassador for Sheffield Hospital Charities, he has agreed to host a meet and greet fundraising exhibition of his work at the Lord Mayors Rooms in December. He is working closely with his management team to create a new line of jigsaws featuring his most popular works.
Baking Day at 43 Fitzalan Street
Those who know Joe would not describe him as an over sentimental or emotional man but our latest acquisition almost brought a tear to his eye.
He saw the huge 30”x 40” painting and stood for a long moment with his hand over his mouth, looking at a painting he last saw half a century ago, then regaining his composure stood back and said
“43 Fitzalan Street. When mum died just after the War, when I was 8, I lived there with my Nan and uncle George. Nan baked every other Tuesday, starting at around 11, Monday was washing day. That’s uncle George, searching for his glasses as usual, which he struggled to see without his glasses on.
The radio was always tuned to American Forces Network, great jazz music and lots of Glen Miller as I recall. On the dresser also, a photo of my late grandad and a mug adorned with the timeless phrase ‘A present from Cleethorpes.’
The newspaper on the table tells of a Sex Scandal which, if memory serves, was vaguely connected to the Royal Family.”
After a few more moments reminiscing Joe picked up the canvas and turned it over and continued.
“Yes, I thought so. I made this canvas. I couldn’t afford to buy such a big canvas from a posh art shop so I went to Maxeys Upholsterers near Kemsley House in town and bought some deckchair canvas for 6 shillings and 7 pence a yard, acquired a bit of wood and behold a 40”x 30” canvas.”
If you would like to own this classic early “Joe” and a big part of his history, please get in touch.
In the summer of last year when we moved Joe from his old boat, we took away a few old boxes and carrier bags of bits and bobs that Joe had accumulated over the last few years. These were sitting in HQ gathering dust until our archivist went through them a couple of weeks ago. He was delighted to find not only some early sketch books and photographs of the great man in his curly haired prime but a ragged old envelope containing something quite special which Joe had forgotten all about.
Many years ago Joe exhibited his original art at the RONA (Register Of Naïve Art) Gallery in Mayfair, London. Fortunately the curator had the foresight to produce transparencies of Joe's originals before they were sold. We thought we had uncovered a little curiosity for our burgeoning Joe Scarborough archive until our photographer chimed up; “You know transparencies make beautiful prints?” And he was right.
We have produced over twenty prints of exceptional quality and clarity of works that, unless you lived in Mayfair in the 1990's, have never seen before. Many of these depict iconic sports scenes and venues and represent some of Joe's favourite paintings.
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We know the last year has been tough for everyone but as always it seems as though mums have stoically born more of the burden than most.
What with working from home, having the kids at home and heaven forbid having husbands at home.
We asked Joe if he could create something to remind us all how precious mums are, especially when the going gets tough.
What he came up with is The School Run which is simple and eerily topical as the return to school almost coincides with Mother’s Day although Joe didn’t know this when he painted it.
Joe explained, “Mothers are the glue that hold everything together. My mum, my wife and now my daughter were and are shining examples of that maternal fortitude that binds us all together, especially in times like this.
God bless em, every one.”
Before the latest dreaded lockdown, in the halcyon days that were Tier 2, Joe and I did our bit to ‘eat out to help out’ by holding our “business lunches” in some of Sheffield’s delectable taverns.
One such eatery was The Summer House at Dore.
After one particularly long lunch we ambled back to the car, parked illegally I suspect, in the train station car park. I got in and started the car but realised Joe hadn’t joined me.
I jumped out fearing that he had slumped insensible to the floor but he was nowhere to be seen.
Then I heard his dulcet tones coming from the station.
“Come and have a look at this.”
I walked through the gate to see him stood precariously close to the edge of the tracks gazing through his hands in the shape of a frame.
“Now this would make a great painting” he mused.
And so it came to pass.
The small but beautifully formed original was completed over Christmas.
I must remember to take Kate at the Summer House a signed print if we’re ever aloud to eat there again.
Now that Joe has had both his jabs, it looks as though Covid is just another adversity in his long life that has been overcome and he’s looking forward to the coming year in his usual rude health.
He said philosophically,
“I know something will get me eventually but at least now it shouldn’t be that bloody virus.”
I was chatting to him this morning when I dropped off some provisions. (A spicy curry with all the trimmings and a fruit cake, to be eaten separately of course)
When asked what the coming year held in store for him he was his usual optimistic, ebullient self.
“Work, work and more work, interspersed with a little leisure and a smattering of pleasure. By the end of January I should have completed my latest large canvas, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, which, by the way has been an absolute joy to work on and has scratched an itch that I’ve had for many a year.
Later in the year I may finally give in to the clamour to paint my story. It won’t be an autobiographical work as such as nothing much happened for the first 20 years but I may consider a history of my working life because I haven’t always been a painter you know. Let’s wait and see.
I will do more of the small canvases and character studies that proved so popular in 2020 and I may even fit in a couple of private commissions if something tickles my fancy.
Restrictions last year meant my charitable work and public appearances were curtailed but I hope to ramp these back up in the summer and as newly appointed Ambassador to the Sheffield Hospital Charities, I will do all I can to promote and assist the wonderful health workers of our great city, without whom, many of us would not be here looking forward to a brighter and happier and healthier 2021.”
I left the great man at his easel, brush in hand, his log fire blazing away and a veritable feast awaiting him later. Was ever a man more content?
We know Joe's followers and fans love in his works because of their beautiful colours, composition and subject matter, but have you ever thought about them as an investment?
Here at Joe Scarborough Art, we use expert photographic techniques to take a digital image of Joe's artwork that is then used to make high quality, limited print runs. While these artworks are not unique, they are still considered original artworks.
With Joe's limited edition prints, we restrict the total amount of artworks produced in the edition to 100, sometimes less, so that each individual work will retain its value over time. Once the limited print run is sold out, they will never be reprinted.
To put into perspective just how much a limited edition print can increase in value, we currently have three L.S Lowry signed prints from limited runs that are now valued at £12,000 or more - a huge increase on their original sale price.
Typically, the first and last prints to be signed are the most collectable and will hold or increase in value better than any other number from the print run.
Click here to see all our 1/100
]]>“BUSKER ON EASY STREET” SELLS IN RECORD TIME.
At the end of October a painting by Joe titled “THAT’S HIM” sold within 30 minutes of it being offered for sale. We thought that record might stand for a while, but no.
His latest work called “BUSKER ON EASY STREET” has just sold within 1 minute of going live. Beat that!
]]>Dear Joe,
I just wanted to say a huge thank you from us all at Sheffield Hospitals Charity and Neurocare for the wonderful support that you have given to us.
You have been so generous offering so many prizes for our auctions and to become our Ambassador has put the cherry well and truly on top of the cake!
Your kindness means that patients in Sheffield and the surrounding areas are able to get the very best care that they deserve and for that we are so grateful.
The Palliative Care unit at the Northern General Hospital are absolutely thrilled with the signed, authenticated prints that you gave to them to adorn the walls of the newly refurbished reception area and relative room and they have already received lots of compliments on them.
Again, thank you so much for your generosity and kindness and I hope to see you soon for coffee and cake when all the madness is over.
Stay safe and well and take care,
With love
Kimberley - Community Fundraiser
With the rising prices of Joes original paintings and even a basic signed print selling for £100, Joe has, for a while been concerned that a large portion of his fans and admirers who supported him through good times and bad for so many years could no longer afford to own a little bit of “JOE”.
So when we approached him about producing a 2021 Calendar, he agreed on the condition that we sold them at cost and with free postage to make them affordable to almost everyone as a thank you to all his loyal support out there.
It’s been years since one has been produced but we now intend to make this an annual event and we would love any suggestions about which paintings should be in next years offering.
We like it, Joe loves it and we hope you do too.
Here’s hoping that it brings a little cheer and colour into your lives over the grey days ahead.
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With global interest now growing in Joes work, fewer and fewer are coming to the market as the investment potential of Joes work is being realised.
Original Joe Scarborough's that do come up for auction now sell for double or triple the Auctioneers estimate which begs the question, where do these estimates come from.
Recently a small Joe had an upper estimate of £800 and sold for over £4000 including commissions and a larger Joe had an upper estimate of £3500 and sold for over £10,000 including fees.
We totally understand putting a low reserve on an item to encourage bidding but the estimate is supposed to be a realistic expectation of the selling price.
Let’s hope that auction houses cotton on soon to the reality that original Joe Scarborough art is hot, hot ,hot and prices are only going one way.
View all our originals here
]]>In our tireless quest to discover the whereabouts of Joes original works we have uncovered many gems but this one is very special.
A rare watercolour, elegant in its simplicity and still in its original frame, it was painted in 1979 and is now being enjoyed by the third generation of the family that purchased it.
This scene of a northern family gathered for dinner at “Tea Time” is timeless Joe Scarborough and it’s easy to see how contemporary artists like Pete McKee have been influenced by the great man.
We dearly wanted to have this one in our archive but quite understandably the owners simply could not bear to part with it but they did agree that we could produce a limited edition of 100 prints which Joe will sign and which will be offered for sale shortly.
]]>After inheriting this painting, a lady from Chesterfield decided to do a little research. She saw the handwritten title and signature by George Cunningham on the back of the frame which led her to Joescarborough.co.uk, which is custodian of George’s archive. In that archive she found the actual two page preparatory sketch for her painting. It is truly a privilege to have the two reunited after all these years. After some persuasion the lady has allowed us to offer the painting and sketch for sale together for the princely sum of £1000. If I lived in HOLMESFIELD I would buy it myself.
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Famed Sheffield artists Joe Scarborough will be talking about his life at a special event in the Rotherham stately home which stars in his latest painting.
Joe, 82, has stamped his inimitable style on a glorious, action-packed oil painting to help Wentworth Woodhouse Preservation Trust with its fundraising.
He will take part in a Q&A at the house with the Trust’s chair, Dame Julie Kenny, on Friday September 18, a date rescheduled from September 11.
In line with Government COVID-19 regulations, guests are required to wear face masks and only book tickets for people in their social bubble.
The evening event for up to 50 will be held in the Long Gallery and seating will be carefully arranged, ensuring only those in the same social bubble are near to each other.
Joe's bold, joyful paintings of Yorkshire life have become instantly recognisable. He began painting professionally after leaving his job underground at Thorpe Hesley Colliery - he saw Wentworth Woodhouse in the distance every day on his way to the pit’s bath house.
Limited edition prints of Joe’s painting of Wentworth Woodhouse, which was commissioned by Dame Julie, will be on sale on the night.
Ticket-holders can submit a question for Joe by emailing it to events@wentworthwoodhouse.org.
Book tickets at www.wentworthwoodhouse.org.uk/
Joe’s Wentworth Woodhouse prints are also being sold at the supporters’ stand in the gardens (Wednesday to Sunday) and via the Trust’s online shop https://bit.ly/31gkkmm
]]>After quizzing a local couple, we were directed to the house of a delightful lady by the name of Joy, a member of the Parish Council and as were soon to discover, the font of all knowledge regarding HARTHILL.
She invited us into her garden and in the sunshine explained that the shrine was, in fact, part of a network of wells and springs that are celebrated at certain times of the year with the ancient traditional art of Well Dressing.
Unfortunately, this year's Festivals had to be cancelled because of COVID so Carnival society decided to display an image of Joes 1988 painting of the village reminding everyone of the festivities lost and the promise of their return.
Best wishes from Joe and I to all in HARTHILL and mat the festivities recommence with Godspeed next year.
]]>In 2006 Weston Park Cancer Charity approached Joe to produce a painting celebrating the hospital and it’s peerless, inimitable staff. The idea was to get local businesses and individuals to sponsor the painting to cover Joe's fee who would then include them in the piece.
]]>In 2006 Weston Park Cancer Charity approached Joe to produce a painting celebrating the hospital and it’s peerless, inimitable staff.
The idea was to get local businesses and individuals to sponsor the painting to cover Joe's fee who would then include them in the piece.
The result was an entertaining, colourful and informative triumph, highlighting not only the hospital and many Sheffield landmarks but the generous businesses who made it possible, many of whom are still thriving today. 500 prints were then produced and signed by Joe to be sold off to raise money for the Weston Park Cancer Charity.
Now, with the runaway success of the Joe Scarborough Art store and network and our collaboration with other charities that Joe has worked with in the past, it was natural for us to team up with Weston Park to sell the remaining prints.
The prints are on sale for. £100 each, with £50 from each sale going to the charity. Click here to purchase
ENJOY THE WORK. SUPPORT THE CHARITY. FEEL GOOD.
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For the last couple of years, we have been asking people to come forward with their original Joe Scarborough paintings so that we could certify and create a register.
To date, we have authenticated and certified almost 300.
This one titled THE BOATHOUSE, certified today, may well be the earliest yet discovered.
Although undated Joe suspects it could be from the early 1960s and was painted during what he describes as his “experimental impressionist period”. If you think you have a Joe Scarborough earlier than this or any Joe Scarborough that you would like authenticating, please get in touch.
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Joe Scarborough and Steve Eyre pose with the TWENTY FACES OF SHEFFIELD statue which has been displayed since 2010 in various areas in Meadowhall.
Commissioned by local entrepreneur Steve to celebrate the 20 anniversary of Meadowhall in 2010, it was created in the shopping centre over a two week period by celebrated sculptor and personal friend of Joes, Andrew Vickers (STONEFACE).
It’s tenure at Meadowhall being at an end, Andrew and Steve have offered the work to the SPARC Rehabilitation centre in Sheffield where it will take pride of place in their garden area.
Watch this space!
Joe has now stamped his inimitable style on a glorious, action-packed oil painting of the Rotherham stately home to help its fundraising.
Joe knew the mansion long before, though…
In his youth, Joe was a miner at Thorpe Hesley Colliery. Every day, when he finished his shift at the coal face and came up from the shaft, there it was on the horizon.
“I knew it as the Big House and admired it on my way to the pit bath house. I never thought I’d ever step inside it, let alone be asked to paint it,” said Joe, who was a miner for six years before quitting to pursue life as an artist.
The dazzling colours of daylight which hit him when he got back above ground each working day had inspired him to paint, and he’s never looked back.
Thanks to a commission from Dame Julie Kenny, the Rotherham businesswoman who created the Wentworth Woodhouse Preservation Trust and campaigned to purchase and save the Grade I listed mansion, hundreds of supporters can now own a copy of Joe’s latest masterpiece!
We are selling a limited number of signed prints to raise much-needed funds to regenerate the house, its Stables, Riding School and Camellia House.
There are 100 canvas versions for sale at £200 and 250 matt and 250 silk prints at £100.
Outside, a line of guards from the Marquis’s own regiment and a procession of cars through the ages are arriving… including the early 1900s Sheffield Simplex which Earl Fitzwilliam funded, and those of King George and Queen Mary, who stayed at the house in 1912.
In the background, the Gate House, Stables, Camellia House and monuments can be seen, along with Lady Mabel College students and cricketers on the Wentworth Green,
Right in the centre of the picture is Dame Julie.
“I couldn’t leave her out - she is in the entrance to the Marble Saloon, wearing the pale blue outfit she wore to Buckingham Palace to receive her Damehood,” said Joe, who spent almost four months on the work, which currently hangs at Julie’s home.
She plans to loan it to the house and a special place has been earmarked for when it opens again in September (Government Covid-19 restrictions permitting).
Prints and canvases are available HERE
]]>In 1985 Joe Scarborough painted the iconic 30”x 40” oil on canvas, FIRE! With his trademark generosity, Joe donated it to the newly opened Sheffield Fire and Police Museum to help raise funds.
200 signed prints were produced and signed by Joe and soon sold out. Renamed the National Emergency Services Museum in 2014, this wonderful institution once again finds itself in need of funds due to forced closure because of the COVID Crisis.
Once again Joe has agreed to help. A new edition of 250 signed prints called the NESM Edition has been authorised by Joe. Each copy will be hand signed by the man himself and are on sale now on JOESCARBOROUGHART.co.uk for £100 with profits going to the museum. Prints number 1 and 250 will be framed and auctioned off to raise funds as well. Joe has also authorised the creation of a limited edition of 100 signed box canvases which will be on sale before Christmas. Joe is donating his time and his signature free and would ask you to match his generosity by buying a print or a canvas and helping the museum.
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