Meet the artist painting deserted scenes in newly quiet tourist town of Harrogate under lockdown
These are the streets of affluent Harrogate, as seen through the eyes of an artist documenting a most extraordinary year.
As Peter Brown first set up his easel on a newly quietened corner on Parliament Street, he knew the serenity was rare in the centre of the normally booming spa town.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdFamed as he is for his all-weather street scenes, Mr Brown said he hadn't set out to document the pandemic, but his art reflects what he sees.
"I paint what's on the doorstep, I paint what's on the street," he said. "I paint what's happening, and it just so happens that it's been quite a year.
"Now, I paint that sense of lockdown. It's very much documenting this time.
"Harrogate isn't a ghost town but clearly I'm experiencing it as it wouldn't normally be. It is very quiet."
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdMr Brown, who began painting in Yorkshire ahead of a now-cancelled exhibition in February, has spent 11 months documenting the nation to varying degrees.
There are images of London's Regent Street, with Christmas shoppers, lockdown in Bath, the seaside in summer as families were reunited.
Known as Pete the Street, his art aims to capture busy scenes, but his tidy tricks in painting a crowd have proved useless, he said, when faced with now empty pavements.
Regardless of weather, he paints outdoors, with hand warmers and a spare pair of boots on standby nearby.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdAs the year's first snow fell he had drawn attention as he painted on Harrogate's Stray, with passers-by pausing in their daily exercise to watch over his shoulder.
New perspective
He had already arrived by the time the latest lockdown announcement came, and so he stayed and continued, isolated as he was outdoors.
Over several weeks, he hopes to return over intervals to continue his work.
"People just stand and look," he said. "It's like seeing this year from a different perspective. I love to do it, and I think people genuinely love to see it.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad"Outdoor art isn't a big thing in this country - art is generally hived away which makes it more inaccessible," he added.
"I spend my life outdoors. You get addicted to the outdoors, to the light and the air. There is a real positivity to it.
"It's like taking a photograph, but there's more of a process, and it takes a little longer. I'm happiest when I'm out there."
The exhibition, when it comes, will see some 25 to 30 paintings of Harrogate, featuring the town's grand old hotels, large terraces skirting the centre, and the cast iron frontings along parades of shops which reflect the town's Victorian heritage.
Familiar scenes
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThere are scenes from familiar settings such as outside the Royal Pump Room, in the Valley Gardens, or the park from Montpellier Hill, once dubbed the most romantic street in Britain. Some of the paintings are from the famed 200-acre Stray, as colourful lights adorn the trees.
Others face down the busy shopping area of Parliament Street, caught on canvas from under the awning at Bettys where there would more normally be a queue.
"I was painting with snow in the street still reflected in the windows, with the lights flickering as stores shut up shop," said Mr Brown. "Footfall has been at a stop.
"This is an affluent town, which is usually very busy with tourists. Now, that's not there. I can set up in places I couldn't normally set up.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad"What I do is topographic, it's about a place," he added. "I don't know what it was like before. Harrogate is a lovely place, particularly at this time of year, with the lights on the Stray.
"It's lovely to hold Harrogate in my mind like this, it's just magical."
Pete the Street's solo exhibition of A Big Year opened at Messums in London in October and had been due to run in Harrogate for a month from February, although it has now been postponed.
It covers London's empty streets, as Chancery Lane and Fleet Street take on a new tone unobstructed by people, before moving to the south coast as masses crammed the beaches last summer. The winter series covers scenes in Harrogate as lockdown began to take root.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad__________________________________________________________________
Support The Yorkshire Post and become a subscriber today. Your subscription will help us to continue to bring quality news to the people of Yorkshire. In return, you'll see fewer ads on site, get free access to our app and receive exclusive members-only offers. Click here to subscribe.