London, Piccadilly Circus by Night

Made:
1926 in London
commissioner:
London Midland & Scottish Railway Company
artist:
Maurice Greiffenhagen

Painting, oil on artists' board, London, Piccadilly Circus by Night by Maurice Greiffenhagen, 1926. Depicts a crowded scene in Piccadilly Circus in London's West End, with a couple in evening dress, a boy selling newspapers, a policeman, taxis and doubledecker buses. At left is a woman flower seller. Beyond are the surrounding buildings, including the Plaza Theatre advertising 'Back of Beyond' and 'Plaza Orchestra'. Original poster artwork for the London, Midland & Scottish Railway poster 'London by LMS'. Signed and dated by the artist at bottom right. Framed, unglazed.

Piccadilly Circus by Night, an oil painting by Maurice Greiffenhagen, 1926.

This busy scene depicts London's West End, crowded with buses, theatregoers, a newspaper boy and a flower seller. In the background is the Plaza Theatre cinema on Lower Regent Street, with signs in lights advertising the Plaza Orchestra and the film, 'Back of Beyond'. The painting was commissioned by the London, Midland & Scottish Railway and was the original artwork for the poster 'London by LMS'.

Born in London in 1862, Greiffenhagen was a painter, book designer and illustrator who produced several posters for the LMS. He was elected as a Member of the Royal Academy of Arts in 1922.

The Plaza Theatre cinema was built in 1926, so was brand new when Greiffenhagen's poster was published.

Details

Category:
Pictorial Collection (Railway)
Object Number:
1976-9279
Materials:
oil paint and board
Measurements:
frameoverall: 824 mm x 1082 mm x 20 mm,
image: 755 mm x 1015 mm
type:
painting, oil painting and poster artwork