This new study examines how nineteenth-century industrial Lancashire became a leading national and international art centre. By the end of the century almost every major town possessed an art gallery, while Lancashire art schools and artists were recognised at home and abroad. The book documents the remarkable rise of visual art across the county, along with the rise of the commercial and professional classes who supported it. It examines how Lancashire looked to great civilisations of the past for inspiration while also embracing new industrial technologies and distinctively modern art movements. This volume will be essential reading for all those with an interest in the new industrial society of the nineteenth century, from art lovers and collectors to urban and social historians.

1. Introduction: art in the first industrial society
2. Lorenzo in Liverpool: William Roscoe, civic myths and the institutionalisation of urban culture
3. An 'ornament to the town'? The Royal Manchester Institution and early public art patronage in Manchester
4. From private to civic: the diverse origins of the municipal art gallery movement
5. A 'solid foundation'? Art schools and art education
6. The art of philanthropy? The formation and development of the Walker Art Gallery
7. A problem of scale and leadership? Manchester's municipal ambitions and the 'failure' of public spirit
8. Challenging 'the ocean of mediocrity and pretence'? The alternative visions of the Whitworth and Harris Galleries
9. The rise and fall of the municipal art gallery movement? The public and private dimensions of local civic art
Bibliography
Index