From Famine to a feast of art

50 years on, artist returns to show his work at gallery that inspired him

- NEAL KEELING

AGED six, a boy went on trip to Salford Museum and Art Gallery with his mum and dad.

He was mesmerised by a haunting painting called Famine by John Charles Dollman.

Dating from 1904, the work is interpreted by some as depicting the starvation of the human body with a figure of death surrounded by hungry wolves.

The artist, however, wanted it to portray a famine of the human spirit or the demise of the soul after its neglect.

The child was Andrew Alan Matthews and the work would sow a seed of creativity.

Now, nearly 50 years later, an exhibition of his art is opening at the same museum on The Crescent. The work which inspired him remains as part of the permanent collection in the Victorian Gallery.

Andrew's achievement is a testimony to his own human spirit which has overcome tough times.

Mental health issues almost destroyed his career and life - but through art, the support of his family, and medication he has survived and thrived.

Twenty-one of his paintings will be on show at The Park Gallery, a space within the main museum.