Signed l.r.: J.Bateman

Oil on canvas, 38 by 60.5 cm

Bateman was the the son of a Lake District blacksmith and closely observed, working class rural scenes like this were the primary subjects of his most successful work. These included horse fairs, country markets and cattle auctions (including his Commotion in the Cattle Ring of 1935, now in the Tate collection). Such records, amongst them this scene of everyday life in an English pub, are an important record of a rural lifestyle that was in many respects in decline by the mid 1930s. Bateman taught at Cheltenham School of Art, also serving on the Advisory Council of the left leaning AIA (Artist's International Association) and was appointed a full member of the Royal Academy in 1942.