To hear Barrington Tabb described as ‘the L S Lowry of Bristol’ is to expect his paintings to be full of stick men and women scurrying around the city centre. So it’s quite a culture shock to come across his gorgeously coloured, thickly impastoed scenes of city life more reminiscent of Utrillo and Soutine. What comes to mind, too, is the gutsy passion of a Van Gogh or Lucian Freud. He is, almost literally, intoxicated by the smell, the feel, the colour and the texture of paint.

The comparison with Lowry is in Tabb’s dedication to everyday subjects: working-class terraces in south Bristol, the docks, railway bridges, canals and smoking factory chimneys. There wasn’t much hyperbole when one critic described him as ‘Bristol’s artist’. Jon Benington’s book, Passion for Paint (Sansom & Company, Bristol) describes Tabb’s 50-year career, from his earliest landscapes through to the Expressionist industrial scenes and townscapes for which he is best known. His childhood in the country, his work as an inspector of buses and his long battle against ill health are also described. In all there are more than 150 colour reproductions of his paintings. An associated exhibition at Cube Gallery, Perry Road, Bristol, runs from December 1-22, 2006.

The book is available at the gallery and in Bristol bookshops.