A SPECIAL exhibition, which combined art and local history, was staged recently to celebrate, document and preserve stories about people living in and around Westbury Leigh.
The event was a collaboration between local artist, Lesley Longworth, local historian Lily Munday, along with other local artists and photographers.
Held at Westbury Leigh Community Hall on Saturday 10th September, the exhibition culminated over four years of work to document the lives of people living in Westbury Leigh through portraits and accompanying mini biographies.
There was also a photography and artwork competition for local people to help tell their own individual stories of Westbury Leigh.
Lesley explained, “This all started four or five years ago when I met someone who had just turned 100 – she was an incredible character and I started to draw her portrait. When I went back to visit her afterwards, I found out she had unfortunately died.
“She was, as I like to describe, an extra-ordinary ordinary person who had unfortunately left no legacy and as a result, local people struggled to remember her. This set me on a mission to visit people that may have known her, and I managed to meet local historian, Lily Munday, who helped put together something about her life. This inevitably expanded and we decided to find out all the hidden stories of Westbury Leigh!
“This has been a massive undertaking of me taking people’s portraits and Lily finding out all the stories from the lives of the people who live here. It has been a real community project and we’ve tried to weave details about the history of the village into the exhibition as well as welcoming anyone from Westbury Leigh who wanted to share their artistic side.”
Part of the exhibition, created by local multimedia artist Beatriz Acevedo, was also dedicated to celebrating the diverse local wildlife. There were also exhibitions from local photographer, Barry Hill, a display of poetry and historical literature by Lily Munday, a section celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and a section exploring the connection of Westbury Leigh with the armed forces.
Exhibitor, Mark Kimberling, developed his artistic ability following his years of service in the Royal Air Force and exhibited some of his drawings of military aircraft on the day. Mark donates any proceeds to armed services-related charities.
Visitors were encouraged to don 1940s and 1950s attire on the day, with spot prizes given out for the best outfits.
The event also proved popular with some of the local children, with the inclusion of an art and photography competition for youngsters. Cameron McCrann, who has dreams of becoming a professional photographer one day, won the under 10s category in the photography competition.
Cameron’s mother, Kirsty said, “I’m super-proud of what Cameron has achieved as it’s all his own work and he was really motivated to go out and find the best shots around Westbury Leigh. He seems to really enjoy doing it, so to be recognised for his efforts is just great! I know I’m biased, but he’s a real talent!”
Reflecting on the day, Lesley says she has plans to continue documenting the lives of people in Westbury Leigh through portraits and mini biographies, with the hope of holding another exhibition in the future.
To view more photos from the exhibition, go to the Westbury Leigh Community Hall Facebook page.
