Leader of South Kesteven District Council Ashley Baxter writes about community art in the district

Community Art has been popular in South Kesteven for hundreds of years, writes Ashley Baxter (Ind), leader of South Kesteven District Council.

The medieval wall paintings at St John’s Church in Corby Glen are among the finest in the country.

The illuminated manuscript known as the Luttrell Psalter was commissioned for the Lord of the Manor at Irnham in the 14th century and is of such beauty and importance that it is now regarded as one of the British Library’s greatest treasures.

Our artistic tradition continues to this day. Currently, we have artists-in-residence in each of our four towns. These have been funded by South Kesteven’s UK shared prosperity fund.

We have used the same fund to support an exhibition, The Whale – Plastic Ocean, which opens at Stamford Recreation Ground today (14th March) which will educate, inform and entertain children and adults about the impact of plastic pollution on marine life.

Meanwhile, the recently launched Grantham Creates project aims to brighten up the town centre by displaying work by local artists in shops and offices.

I am delighted that the organisers at the Union Street gallery have allowed me to participate and have loaned an eye-catching canvas for display in my office.

This initiative is easily transferable and I hope it will be rolled out to our other towns in the future. However, the love for art across the district is also demonstrated by the publicly accessible Willoughby Gallery in Corby Glen, the arts centres in Bourne, Stamford and Grantham and the thriving camera club and community library events in the Deepings.

A well-known Prime Minister once stated that art is a vital part of our civilisation, of our vision, and our heritage. On this, at least, I agree with her!