Western Morning News (Saturday)
Capturing the essence of happy times
THE Ashburn Gallery in the small market town Ashburton, sits at the foot of Dartmoor in South Devon, is coming out of lockdown with a giggle!
Cornish artist Marie Mills and gallery owner Sue Sturton have been conspiring since the previous lockdown, trying to capture an essence of simple pleasure and happiness that would make people smile during these difficult times.
The result is a heart felt exhibition entitled ‘ Come into the Garden Maud’, the title borrowed from the poem by Tennyson.
The work in the exhibition follows the life and love of ‘ Derrick and Maud’ and the following paragraph tells the viewer all about them.
Derrick and Maud: Derrick is ‘West Country’ through and through, now retired he has a huge penchant for gardening and regularly wins prizes at the local village shows for the size of his marrows and the succulence of his spuds! Once a fisherman off the Cornish coast he was the proud owner of the trawler ‘ The Merry Maud’ now in retirement he lives with his wife, dog, ducks’ various chickens a cockerel called ‘Oven’ and a blue budgie called ‘Dave’
Maud is a whole different ‘kettle of fish!’ Derrick literally ‘reeled Maud in’. She was wild swimming off the coast of Mevagissey when she inadvertently got caught in a rip current. She was not in any mortal danger but alas her swimming cossie was and when Derrick hauled her on board, he certainly got more than a slap in the face with a wet fish!
Maud is renowned by locals as a little ‘hippie’ in her approach; never one to not give anything a try she is regularly spotted doing a ‘downward dog’ to wholly unsuitable music in her garden, Derrick with trug in hand watching on adoringly.
They now live happily and still crazily in love, embracing their retirement with yomps on the South West Coast Path and guerrilla gardening.
This exhibition is a story about their life, love and the amusing stories that punctuated their lives.
Artist Marie Mills is better known for her enchanting flowerscapes that are collected worldwide, they capture the riotous colours of the Devon and Cornish hedgerows, colours exploding like floral fireworks.
The exhibition runs from Thursday, December 3, 2020 December until February 27, 2021
For further information contact sue@ashburngallery.co.uk, call on 01752 853294 or visit ashburngallery. co.uk.