Fay Johns
THE ARTIST
Fay Johns was born in Mevagissey, when the seas around Cornwall abounded with fish and marine life. She has an enduring love of the sea, the rivers, the coastline, flowers, fauna and wildlife that are so much a part of her beloved South West.
Fay's watercolours draw inspiration from their beauty and are distinctive for their lively colour combinations. Her paintings sell through exhibitions and galleries. Her initial following in the South West has now extended in the UK and overseas to France, Canada and the USA.
Fay has been awarded a "Highly Commended" artist by the EAC Art Awards in 1997, 1998, and 2001. She has successfully exhibited in the prestigious Mall Galleries, London, and her work has been published in the UK.
Fay uses the small flower paintings on her cards and sells them privately - they are very popular.
Links: Delamore Arts
(ARTICLE WRITTEN BY JAMIE SMITH):
If the house was about to sink and Pete Goss could grab one thing before leaving it would be a precious watercolour by little known Cornish artist Fay Johns.
Pete Goss's life has been dominated by adventure. The former royal marine hit headlines during the Vendee Globe round-the-world race of 1996/7 when he sailed upwind into a ferocious storm in the Southern Ocean to rescue fellow competitor Raphael Dinelli.
His heroism saw him awarded the Legion dâ'Honneur, France's highest honour, and an MBE. In 2000, his groundbreaking 120-foot catamaran, Team Phillips, broke up in the North Atlantic after being fatally damaged by another storm.
So Pete, what's the painting?
It's a yacht at anchor in an idyllic spot on the Lynher River. It's by local artist Fay Johns and it's called "Mystical."
Why do you like it so much?
I love the scene of peace and tranquility and it's a river that has been a big part of my life is still a big part of our lives. It's a stone's throw from our home and it's where I learnt to sail. And what a lovely anchorage, wouldn't you love to be on that boat? At the end of the day, that's what I work for to be in a scene like that.
Where did you get it?
When we were working on the Team Philips project, we had thousands of cards of support, literally thousands, and the artist sent a copy of this image as a good luck card.
When I saw it I thought 'what a gorgeous picture', I brought it home and showed my wife Tracey. We rang Fay but the piece was committed to an exhibition in Tavistock so we went to the opening night and managed to buy it. Tracey and I talked to her for ages, she's a lovely lady. We believe strongly in the Westcountry and we like to show our support for local people...