The magic and mystery of the wild rugged landscape of Dartmoor has been captured by artists for centuries, from J M Turner to the contemporary artists of today. However, there is one important Dartmoor painter who has all but been forgotten. Her name is Jean Jones and now, thanks to her grandson, her story is about to be told.
As a child Jean moved with her family to Devon so that her father could recover after four years in the trenches of The Great War. From those early years she became fascinated with the wild landscapes of Dartmoor which became a place of great significance and source of inspiration throughout her life.
An extraordinarily talented and dedicated artist her career culminated in a solo show at the Ashmolean Museum in 1980. She was lauded by notable critic David Carritt and her friend Iris Murdoch proclaimed that she would 'one day be as famous as Van Gogh'. Tragically, her career was curtailed by her struggles with mental illness.
Jean Jones died in 2012 leaving behind a treasure trove of over four hundred paintings. Now her legacy and her place in the history of post-war British art is being reclaimed.