Kenneth Steel R.B.A.;S.G.A. 1906-1970
KENNETH STEEL AND DURHAM
This large watercolour entitled Durham City was recently on display at the Steel exhibition at Darlington Library Art Gallery , Crown Street, Darlington
Steel noted ‘Durham is one of the happiest hunting grounds for the artist… Everything in its precincts seems to have that touch of fantasy which marks it with a romantic element. Even in the apparently poor and dejected parts one finds choice pieces of old architecture’.
PRINTMAKER AND RAILWAY POSTER ARTIST
Steel was a highly regarded printmaker in his early career. A full catalogue raisonne of all Kenneth Steel's published line engravings and drypoints features in the recently published book available from this website. Furthermore Steel became one of British Railways top poster designers between 1948 and 1964 and a catalogue raisonne of all his railway posters is also include in the book.
Steel's dynamic Quad Royal poster of Durham opposite was an exhibit in the superb exhibition RAILWAY POSTERS FROM THE GOLDEN AGE OF TRAVEL at Ushaw College, Durham during mid 2022
A small section of his posters will be included in the NEW EXHIBITION at Darlington Library , Crown Street, Darlington , 17th August to 26th September 2024
PRINT CATALOGUE RAISONNE
This line engraving with drypoint of Durham is Steel's tour de force published in 1935. The first full catalogue raisonne of all his 43 published prints forms an important section of the book published in 2020 and is available on this website
A VERSATILE ARTIST
From 1923 onwards Kenneth was painting regularly and started exhibited his watercolours, oils and engravings locally in Sheffield, notably at the Heeley Art Club and Hallamshire Sketch Club.However in 1932 he secured a contract with the print publishers, James Connell and Sons and annually published line engraving and drypoint prints both before and after the War.
In 1935 he exhibited two of these prints at the Royal Academy and then in November 1935 he became the youngest elected member of the Royal Society of British Artists. His work in watercolour was shown at three one man exhibitions in London in 1934 and 1937 and Dublin in 1938.
After WW2 he diversified into the fields of perspective drawings and commercial art. This included railway posters and carriage prints.
His colourful late oil paintings are a revelation , opposite is his canvas entitled Street Traders Nassau
NEW DISCOVERY- Olive Grove Depot, Sheffield
A drawing dated 1942 of which Steel later wrote that " I made this drawing over several evenings during the summer months" adding that for the composition "there were dozens of different kinds of objects , giving a splendid chance for linear perspective" It is a superb War time drawing, his dated works are rare.