Ramsey pier painting picked for UK watercolour show
An Isle of Man-based artist's painting of the Queen's pier in Ramsey has been selected for one of the UK's leading watercolour competitions.
Chris Powles's painting Ramsey Pier, To the North will be displayed alongside other winning entrees at the Sunday Times exhibition in London.
The artist said the painting was "symbolic of the downturn in Manx tourism since its Victorian heyday".
The exhibition will open at the Mall galleries on 1 September.
The judging panel for the 2012 competition includes artist Penny Johnson and art critic Frank Whitford.
It is the fourth time Mr Powles, former Ramsey Grammar School head of art, has had work selected for the competition.
He moved to the island 37 years ago and said he "immediately felt an affinity to the dramatic Manx landscape".
"The painting is concerned with [the] transient nature of man and the natural environment over time.
"The image is symbolic of the downturn in Manx tourism since its Victorian heyday, and of its lost heritage.
"It is sad to think that the rusting carcass you see now is nothing like the pier which was in full use, complete with train and a coffee shop at the end, when I moved to the island in 1975."
The Queen's Pier was originally built in 1886 at a cost of about £45,000 but has since fallen into disrepair.