The Refrectory, Chetham's Hospital

Janet Kirk 1884 - 1966

Summary

Seven young boys can be seen sitting on long benches at a table in the dining room of Chetham's College, Manchester. Wearing their distinctive long blue school uniform, the boys are caught in a ray of sun that streams from a four-light window set in an arch in the strongly-built stone wall. A short screen made of panelled dark wood is at the end of the boys' table. The ceiling is high, and the floor is made of stone. Altogether the pathos of the picture is in the contrast between the plump-cheeked youth of the boys and the austere medieval setting.