AN internationally acclaimed American artist is visiting Tavistock in what is a huge coup for a local picture framing business. Henry Asencio is undertaking six commissions ?two oil paintings and four line drawings ? during his stay, and opening an exclusive exhibition of his work. Bringing him over is a remarkable achievement by Tavistock Picture Framing Gallery proprietors Martin and Nina Hawkins, who are the Californian artist?s sole representative in this country. ?It is a massive coup,? said Martin. ?We see it as the art world equivalent to the Rolling Stones coming to play at the Wharf! ?People in the trade cannot believe what we have pulled off. We have a lot of other leading artists from America monitoring this to see how it goes.? The couple met Asencio two years ago when they visited the New York Art Expo as a prize for winning the Pino Gallery of the Year Award. Nina immediately fell in love with Asencio?s strong, sensuous compositions and they persuaded him to let them sell his work ? the only British gallery to do so. ?Henry Asencio and his husband and wife management team have become very good friends of ours. In America his work has been regarded as the finest of figurative artists.? Although the gallery?s address ? the Plymouth Road Industrial Estate ? may not conjure aesthetic images the reputation of this small but vibrant business draws customers from all over the country. ?People regard us as a hidden gem that they have found. We are totally independent ? we are not tied to any publishers. ?We try to find artists that have plenty of integrity and whose limited editions are low in number and who have investment potential,? said Martin. ?In America when Henry has his exhibitions they are in huge galleries with limosines pulling up outside. I said we are on the outskirts of Tavistock on an industrial estate and they had us checked out and, as a result he decided to come.? Henry Asencio will be at the gallery on Saturday (June 3) for the one-day exhibition of his paintings which will feature eight originals and a range of limited editions.