FARMERS in the Hatherleigh area have become subjects of a series of paintings by North Devon artist Shan Miller whose latest exhibition celebrates the return of livestock to the area after the foot and mouth crisis.
The exhibition called 'Celebration of the Farmyard', which is being sponsored by the National Farmers' Union is on display at the Salar Gallery, Hatherleigh until May 11.
Well known figures in farming including Geoffrey Cleverdon from Hatherleigh, Peter Jones from Iddesleigh and Des Shadrick from Holsworthy feature among the farmer portraits and there are numerous paintings of sheep, cattle and pigs, some of which are life size, and have a comical edge.
Shan, who was born in Cornwall, studied at the North Devon College and has been a professional artist since the early 1980s. She has done many commissions including some for the National Trust, at Rosemoor Gardens and in France.
She works mainly in acrylics and is well-known for her small rustic animal paintings which she has sold all over the world.
She also paints murals and many of the paintings in this exhibition are up to eight feet across.
Shan said she hoped people would find her work amusing because after the misery of the past year, the area needed a boost.
'The exhibition is about animals being back in the fields although I realise not all farmers in the area are in that position at the moment,' she said.
'Following the display at the Salar Gallery, I hope to take the paintings out to the agricultural shows this season.'
Mayor of Hatherleigh Dennis Bater called the exhibition 'extraordinary'.
'I think it will appeal to everyone who likes realism paintings and its got a real local flavour with many familiar faces,' he said.
'Some of the paintings are huge — they have to be seen to be believed.'