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Lot Essay
‘When I saw this painting again for the first time in many years, I realised immediately that it was one of the best railway scenes I have ever painted. In fact, I now wish that I had never parted with the original! … I can bring to mind very clearly the moment it portrays. I had gone to Southall Shed to sketch a 9F in preparation for the painting that subsequently became one of my best-known pictures, Evening Star. The driver of the locomotive was only too pleased to leave everything to me and this weather-beaten class 9F was mine for the day. Her boiler pressure was down but there was steam enough to move her. In solitary state, I drove her from the shed at Southall, out onto the turn-table and back over two sets of points until I had her, posed against the rust and weeds of a forgotten siding. This setting I felt was an appropriate epitaph to the last months in the life of a fine old engine.
The Evening Star painting was soon completed from the sketches I had made, but it was some years before I put the ‘real’ scene on canvas, once again using my careful original sketches, adding some figures to bring the picture to life and calling it Autumn of Steam.’ (Terence Cuneo, on the present work.)
The present work is a moving tribute to the final days of steam on British Railways. Class 9F was the last of the British Railways Standard Classes. Laid down in 1951, it turned out to be the most successful, and it is appropriate that the steam era on British rails should close with a design that could rival any of the country’s previous locomotive designs. Designed for heavy freight use, its versatility encouraged its employment in a variety of roles, including express passenger work where 9Fs occasionally exceeded 90 mph.
At the very heart of London Suburban Services, Southall Shed also had an allocation of freight locomotives, hence Cuneo’s opportunity to sketch a 9F there in preparation for Evening Star, and subsequently Autumn of Steam. Living within easy reach of the shed, Cuneo was a frequent and welcome visitor there, which accounts for the relaxed way he was ‘lent’ a 9F for the day.
The Evening Star painting was soon completed from the sketches I had made, but it was some years before I put the ‘real’ scene on canvas, once again using my careful original sketches, adding some figures to bring the picture to life and calling it Autumn of Steam.’ (Terence Cuneo, on the present work.)
The present work is a moving tribute to the final days of steam on British Railways. Class 9F was the last of the British Railways Standard Classes. Laid down in 1951, it turned out to be the most successful, and it is appropriate that the steam era on British rails should close with a design that could rival any of the country’s previous locomotive designs. Designed for heavy freight use, its versatility encouraged its employment in a variety of roles, including express passenger work where 9Fs occasionally exceeded 90 mph.
At the very heart of London Suburban Services, Southall Shed also had an allocation of freight locomotives, hence Cuneo’s opportunity to sketch a 9F there in preparation for Evening Star, and subsequently Autumn of Steam. Living within easy reach of the shed, Cuneo was a frequent and welcome visitor there, which accounts for the relaxed way he was ‘lent’ a 9F for the day.