This exhausted North East man is probably a labourer; as his clothes are smeared with dirt. The picture seems to show one of the many small working-class houses built in the towns in the 19th century. On the floor in front of the fire is a traditional proggy mat; made from strips of old clothes. The fire is fitted with a hot-water heater - the tap can be seen near the mans knee. It is probably a Sunderland scene; though the artist also painted in Newcastle. J. Woodhouse Stubbs was headmaster of Sunderland School of Arts and Crafts from 1890 to 1895;