Rodley by Night — Painting the Canal That Industry Built
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There are places that reveal themselves differently after dark. Rodley, on the Leeds Liverpool Canal in West Yorkshire, is one of them.
It was my daughter who first saw it — camera in hand on a summer evening, she captured the canal as it looked under floodlights: the new Rodley Bridge glowing against the water, the skeletal silhouette of the old crane works reflected in still canal water, the whole scene transformed into something almost theatrical. She sent me the photograph, and I knew immediately I had to paint it.
A Bridge with a Reputation
If you've ever travelled the Leeds Liverpool Canal by barge, you'll know Rodley Bridge. The new bridge — built just two years ago to replace the original — was constructed to open up access to a housing development on the land once occupied by Barkers Refrigeration Engineers. It's a smart-looking piece of infrastructure. It is also, by all accounts, an absolute nightmare to operate.
Narrowboat and barge crews dread it. The mechanism is notoriously stiff and unforgiving, and the bridge has already earned itself a reputation along this stretch of the canal. As a subject for a painting though, it's perfect — all geometry and tension, hard lines against soft water.
The Industrial Ghost
Just as striking are the old crane works visible in the background — buildings that have quietly found a new purpose, though quite what goes on behind those old walls is anyone's guess. They stand as a reminder of the heavy industry that once defined this stretch of the canal.
The Painting
Working from a night photograph brought its own challenges. The floodlighting creates pools of warm colour against deep shadow, and the canal reflections fracture the light in unexpected ways. I worked in acrylics, building up the luminosity of the lit surfaces while keeping the surrounding darkness genuinely dark — no softening it into dusk.
The result is one of the most atmospheric pieces I've painted this year.
“Watch me painting Rodley by Night on YouTube.”
The Rodley Canal Collection
The Rodley paintings are available in several formats:
- Rodley Canal Reflections – Original Acrylic Painting — the night scene itself
- Sunset at Rodley Canal – Original Acrylic Painting — a companion piece in evening light
- Rodley Canal Reflections – Fine Art Print — museum-quality giclée print
- Canal at Rodley – Fine Art Print
- Canal at Rodley – Original Pastel Drawing
- Through the Gate – Original Pen Drawing — the old gateway on the Rodley Canal walk
- Through the Gate – Fine Art Print
- Rodley Canal Reflections – Greetings Card