When dad was a lad
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This picture is dedicated to my father. When I was young he used to tell me stories of what life was like when he was a young lad like myself, he would have me in stitches with all his funny stories whether they were true or not was irrelevant, all that mattered was the pictures he managed to conjure in my mind.
He even managed to see humour in poverty, in fact at times he could see humour in everything.
The picture depicts Stanley Grove in Longsight. (The area is described in the painting Standing Room Only) This is where my father was born, in fact he lived opposite the builders yard next to the bridge. His father later rented the yard when he started his own plumbing business.
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The two shops near the bridge consist of a toyshop and a pet shop; the two boys outside the pet shop are my dad and his brother.
So the story goes, the two of them used to tease and torment the animals in the shop window, one in particular was a huge rabbit that was always hypo active, so it would often overreact to children tapping on the window and other distractions, causing much amusement to the two miscreant outside.
The owner of the shop would often tell the boys off, with threats ranging from a clip round the ear, to telling their Mam, a threat that would send a chill to the bone.
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One Saturday afternoon they decided to tease the Rabbit, but to their surprise the rabbit was nowhere to be seen. The bell rang as the pet shop door opened, expecting to see the pet shop owner they were immediately on their guard, only to be confronted by an elderly lady carrying a very large vengeful rabbit that immediately struggled free and sank its teeth deep into my father’s behind and wouldn’t let go. The screams could be heard for miles, which certainly caused the curtains to twitch, but the pain had only just started. The district nurse had to be called, (the lady on the bike) so lots of painful iodine, and an agonizing stitch combined with a clout round the ear from his Mam.
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The painting portrays the above story just before the well earned attack.
Watercolour Gouache and airbrush on paper.