Echoes of Lowry
Self-taught artist Danny Abrahams was in his 30s when he discovered a passion for painting and, as Yvette Huddleston discovers, it has changed his life. Pictures by Tony Johnson.
When artist Danny Abrahams and his sister Vicky opened their new gallery and shop in Haworth last autumn it was, he says, “like a little dream come true”. It was disappointing that just four weeks later they had to close as the UK went into another national lockdown, but this month, as restrictions begin to ease again, they are looking forward to reopening.
For both of them Haworth has long been a favourite place. “All our family have always loved Haworth,” says Abrahams. “The main street with all the cobblestones is like stepping back in time.” The gallery is housed in a building, halfway down the cobble-stoned main street, that dates back to 1881. Originally built as a butcher’s shop with accommodation for the butcher and his family, it continued as a butcher’s until the mid-1960s and has at various times since then been a gift shop and a gallery. “When it came up for sale we thought ‘let’s just go for it’. My sister had always wanted a shop in Haworth and I thought a gallery to showcase my work would be great.”
Born in Bradford in 1977, Abrahams came to art relatively late, at the age of 32 when his girlfriend bought him his first set of paints, and he is entirely self-taught. Using oils on board, he creates evocative, vividly coloured images of sweeping landscapes and dramatic skies; themes of childhood and memory recur in his work, imbuing his paintings with a warm feeling of nostalgia.
“I grew up in the 1980s and I am of that generation that used to play outside all the time. You would get up at eight in the morning, go out on your bike and not come back until teatime. The world has changed so much since then, so this is nostalgic artwork and it speaks mostly to people of my age or older, but I think each of my paintings will mean something to somebody.”
Now based in Brighouse, near Halifax, where he moved three years ago, Abrahams grew up and lived for 40 years in the Wibsey area of Bradford. At school, art was not really on his radar. “I didn’t study it at school, I was always more interested in football,” he says. “And as a teenager I just wanted to be a footballer.” After leaving school he went into the building trade and another passion replaced football – music. An accomplished musician, he played guitar and wrote songs for indie rock band the Hoover Dams. They enjoyed a modicum of success, playing at venues around the UK, appearing on the radio and in 2007 they took part in the C4 show Get Your Act Together hosted by legendary concert promoter Harvey Goldsmith – and touring and performing took up pretty much all his spare time. “I would be working Monday to Friday on building sites and then gigging at the weekends. We had great fun – we had a lot of local support and we really enjoyed playing live. Then you get to a certain point when you realise you are not going to make it.” The decision was made to wind up the band, and that left Abrahams with time on his hands. “I didn’t have anything to do at the weekends; I was bored and needed something to do. I have always enjoyed