An official unveiling event was held for a new painting that aims to illustrates a town’s community spirit.
Members of the Stokesley Pride in our Town Association (SPIOTA) were among those in attendance in Stokesley Town Hall for the ceremony.
The painting was commissioned by Professor George Carter, who enlisted the services of Jane Gamble, of Chop Gate. She has been a member of Bilsdale Arts and Craft Group for the last 22 years, and it was the biggest art project that she had ever taken on.
Prof Carter and Mrs Gamble decided to make the recently designed garden area near to Springfield roundabout the focal point of the painting. The area was planted by members of SPIOTA and is cared for by them, along with the numerous tubs of flowers and flower beds around the town.
Jane Gamble, alongside Professor George Carter MBE, who commissioned the painting
In designing the painting, Mrs Gamble not only wanted to show some features of the garden and the plants within it, she also wanted to portray the spirit of the community. So, as well as the interesting pathways, the trunk of the birch tree and the flower beds, the lights of the Co-op can be seen in the distance, the store having helped to raise the money for the garden.
The light from a street lamp also illuminates a group of ghostly musicians playing, as a group of children sit on benches, swinging their legs and clapping their hands.
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In his address to the gathering, Prof Carter gave special thanks to the members of SPIOTA. He said that the volunteers made Stokesley look such a beautiful place. He admired the way that the volunteers turned out in numbers every Thursday, whatever the weather, and noted that it was also coming up to that time of year when all of the tubs and the ziggurat in the centre of the town had to be moved away to make room for Stokesley Fair.
The painting by Jane Gamble
He also gave thanks to Mrs Gamble, who said that she had been well out of her comfort zone and was grateful for all of the support that she had received.
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She had tried to include all of the 51 varieties of flowers planted by SPIOTA within her painting. The scene was set as an evening in April, just as the new flowers were appearing. She imagined the ghostly figures as in the Elysian Fields of Stokesley and that they were the memories of musicians that had played there.
The ceremony concluded with the chair of SPIOTA, Linda Purnell, thanking Mrs Gamble for the painting and all of the research that she had put into it, Prof Carter for commissioning the artwork and all of SPIOTA’s sponsors. The painting is now on permanent display at the top of the stairs in Stokesley Town Hall.
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