Art

Jenny Birchall: Painting prime ministers and presidents on the beach

Taking time out from the G7 summit, six world leaders enjoyed a spot of sunbathing on Carbis Bay beach – each of them sporting swimwear emblazoned with their national flags – while Boris Johnson served them all with drinks.

This may not have happened in real life – but artist Jenny Birchall likes to think that it did. For many years, Jenny has been creating comic beach scenes inspired by the diverse range of people who are brought together when they come to Cornwall on holiday, and her two latest paintings, now on display at the New Craftsman Gallery in St Ives, are flights of fancy inspired by the summit.

In the paintings, Presidents Joe Biden, Justin Trudeau and Emmanuel Macron, Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Prime Ministers Mario Draghi, Yoshihide Suga and Boris Johnson are joined by other world leaders past and present, including Barack and Michelle Obama sunbathing and surfing, Nelson Mandela enjoying a great British cuppa and building sandcastles with the Dalai Lama, President Putin displaying his manly physique, Kim Jong-il showing off his sporting prowess, President Trump serving cocktails, and Gandhi keeping a watchful eye on all the fun as the scene’s nominated surf lifesaver. “People who wouldn’t normally come within 100 yards of one another in their day-to-day lives are suddenly half naked and within feet of each other on a beach,” says Jenny, “and having such an internationally diverse and high-profile collection of characters here for the G7 Summit was just too great an opportunity for my paintbrush to miss. These two works mark such an important moment in Cornwall’s history, and I hope they bring some fun and something of our unique British eccentricity to this great event.”

The paintings will be on show at throughout the summer, and both are available as giclee print posters, exclusively at the New Craftsman Gallery. The gallery will also be taking commissions for similar Jenny Birchall artworks throughout this year, which could include you, your family, and anyone else from history who you’d like to hang out with.

See www.newcraftsmanstives.com, visit New Craftsman Gallery at 24 Fore Street, St Ives, or contact info@newcraftsmanstives.com