Korean War veteran’s art triumph

A Cumbernauld ex-Navy man with a talent for painting has won the top prize in a prestigious art contest staged by veterans’ charity Erskine.

Veteran former sailor Peter Devine, 83, whose striking painting Flood Tide will be

the star of the organisation’s annual calendar, handed the cheque for his first prize straight back to the organisation as a donation.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Mr Devine served in the Royal Navy for seven years, seeing action during the Korean War, but while always interested in art started painting with watercolours when in the Merchant Navy.Now he continues to enjoy his creative hobby in a studio at home, where he paints using oils and acrylics - and entered the Erskine competition as a way of showing his support for fellow ex-servicemen.

He received his top award as winner of the Veterans’ Art Competition at a ceremony in Glasgow’s magnificent Trades Hall, where besides the cheque, which he generously declined to accept, he received a trophy and certificate from Erskine chairman Andrew Robertson OBE and chief executive Steve Conway.

Peter said: “I painted Flood Tide from a photograph I saw in a magazine some years ago. “In the photograph the beach was stony but I decided to paint a sandy beach instead.”

He added: “I felt so much pride to win the competition especially when I saw some of the other entries in the Erskine calendar.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I donated the winning cheque to Erskine as I was proud to give something back to the charity.”

Steve Conway said of Peter’s work: “Flood Tide is such a striking painting that it was unanimously selected as the winner.

“A good painting should evoke a thought, a memory or emotion and we felt Peter’s stood out because you feel you are there on the beach - waiting for the tide to float the boats so they can set off for another day’s fishing.”

Related topics: