Whitby Harbour by Elias Bancroft
Pannett Art Gallery, Whitby

‘Whitby Harbour’ was painted by Elias Bancroft around the year 1900. It shows a scene down a street or slipway known as Tin Ghaut in Whitby. This scenic alleyway was a well-known location for painting among artists at the time. 

Bancroft’s art is often described as British Impressionist. Such artists picked places such as Tin Ghaut as a reflection of the daily life of Whitby residents. Artists were partly inspired by the rise of photography and wanted to capture a specific moment in time, as a photo would. Bancroft’s unusual canvas orientation and cropping of the buildings and scene are very striking here, making it seem even more fleeting and ‘unplanned’.

Many Impressionists set up their equipment and painted outside, allowing them to have their subject right in front of them as they worked. .

Bancroft was born in Cheshire and attended school at the Royal Academy of Art in London. After graduating, he taught at the Manchester School of Art and travelled across the country seeking inspiration for his paintings. Whitby was one of his favourite locations.

Tin Ghaut today

Tin Ghaut in Whitby, an old street at the end of Grape Lane, ran between shops and houses down to the harbour.

It was demolished in the 1960s as the city was being renovated and is now a carpark. However, this artwork allows us to imagine what the street would have looked like over a century ago.

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Explore how Bancroft selected his canvas and composition.