WINNER
Retail Art Gallery of the Year
Braaq (1951-1997)
Born in Liverpool in 1951, Brian Shields was a talented young artist who became better known by his pseudonym Braaq, a misspelling of the famous French artist Braque.
Best known for his northern Lowry-esque industrial scenes, his paintings depict the industrial north and the characters that frequented it. Braaq himself can be found in many of the paintings reflected as a young boy in a stripped jumper.
Sadly Braaq died at the young age of 46 from a brain haemorrhage in Yorkshire but leaves behind a body of work which is a testament to his great talent and observational nature. Prices of his original works have appreciated considerably since his death with the record hammer price at being £56,000 at the time of writing.