The son of a poet, Gerald Gould, and Labour politician, Barbara Ayrton Gould, Michael Ayrton was a painter, sculptor, writer, and, from 1944, when he took over the position from John Piper, art critic for The Spectator. From 1937–1939, Ayrton studied in France, working in the studios of Eugene Berman as well as Giorgio de Chirico, to whose empty, melancholy landscapes 'The Large Shore' clearly owes a large debt. Another detectable influence in this painting is that of sculpture, a medium Ayrton turned to in 1953 with the encouragement of Henry Moore, and which became his principal mode of expression up until his premature death at the age of 54. Added to his increasing interest in sculpture were the trips he made to Italy, Egypt, and, in particular, Greece, whose ancient myths provided a rich source for his subsequent imagery.