The Village

I went to see my mum's old friend, May, today.
This is a detail of a painting of the Main Street in the village of Kilmaurs which she has in her hallway.
May - who is 85 is a few weeks time - was born in one of the houses on the left hand side of the picture.
It's by an amateur artist called Harry Allsop who was The Only Artist In The Village when I was growing up in Kilmaurs. He wore a bow-tie. Very outré for Ayrshire in the 1970s.
I have a couple of paintings of Kilmaurs by Harry which I inherited from my mum. He painted a beautiful portrait of my mum's sister, Una, which I was always fascinated by as a child.
There's a lovely looseness about his work.