What is the story behind L.S Lowrys painting 'the cripples'?

Answer 1

Lawrence Stephen Lowry became increasingly fascinated by cripples, misfits, and the standard down and out types later in his career. The point of the painting 'The Cripples' is not what the cripples are suffering from, but the way in which the healthy on-lookers, mostly children, gaze at them with curiosity. Lowry said, ÔI feel more strongly about these people than I ever did about the industrial scene. They are real people, sad people. I'm attracted to sadness and there are some very sad things. I feel like them.Õ It has been suggested that this is Lowry himself, who may have suffered from Asperger's syndrome. It is thought that he is the man walking the dog in the center of the painting. That he is depicted lost in thought, an emotional cripple, and dealing with his own problems, rather than staring at the physical cripples around him.