About Martina – Martina Thomas

Martina Thomas CV

2003 - 2024

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1924

Birth, 26 January at home in Romford Road, Manor Park, Northeast London.

1928

School at St Martin’s Convent, Pages Lane, Muswell Hill.

1933

School at Gumley House Convent school, Isleworth.

1939

School at St Aloysius Convent, Clarendon Square, as a border and later evacuated to Kettering as war broke out.

1940

She enrolled at Northampton School of Art

1942

She enrolled at St Martin’s School of Art, as she was now living back with her parents in Muswell Hill.

1951

Awarded N.D.D. qualification in Fine Art from St Martin’s School of Art. First met her husband to be Eric Mellon.

1952

Moved to the Vicarage, Hillesden, Buckinghamshire. An artist community of three couples. Spent her time developing her drawing and oil painting techniques. Enjoyed the opportunities to go out and paint the local landscape views, as the seasons changed. An example of her work was accepted and hung at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. It was an oil painting portrait of ‘Mrs Edwards’, hung in Gallery XI, Cat No 735. It was hung “on the line”, a prestigious position on the gallery wall.

1954

Work again accepted into Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. An oil painting Still Life, hung in Gallery VIII, Cat No 471

1955

Again another oil painting accepted into Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. An Autumn Landscape, hung in Gallery VII, Cat No 437.

1956

Married her fiancée Eric Mellon. Honeymooned in Paris. Moved with her husband Eric Mellon to Bognor Regis, as the Hillesden Community disbanded.

1957

Moved into newly built house in Rose Green, a suburb of Bognor Regis. Started to explore local area finding suitable places to draw and paint. Another oil painting accepted into Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. A Landscape view of Chapel Street, Bognor Regis, hung in Gallery X, Cat No 610.

1959

Enjoyed painting in the new house, establishing the front bedroom as her studio. Setting up still life arrangements of flowers and fruits. Again, another oil painting accepted into Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. A Still Life, Apricots on a cloth, hung in Gallery XIII, Cat No 576.

1960

Birth of her son Martin in June. Her final oil painting accepted into Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. A Still Life, Lychees on a cloth, hung in Gallery VIII, Cat No 437, Cat No 453.

1961

More artworks produced. Summer holiday in Amalfi, Italy. Several landscape paintings created from the drawings made.

1962

Another memorable holiday, this time in Stiges, Spain. Produced drawings at a bull fight and beach views of golden sands and colourful boats.

1963

Studio extension was added to the house. She had her own purpose-built studio space in which to work, set up still life groups and store finished paintings. Only drawback no heating and little insulation. Unable to use it in the Winter months. Forced to work in the kitchen, which was a little warmer. Summer holiday in Jersey this time. Interested in seeing the files of seaweed on the beaches.

1964

Her daughter Tessa in May. Having two children to look after took up more of her allocated painting time as she had expected. First family holiday to Devon and North Cornwall.

1966

Exhibited her work at the David Paul Gallery, Chichester, West Sussex, jointly with her husband. Continued to produce artworks when conditions allowed. Still Lifes of flowers and fruit and Landscapes of Cornwall and West Sussex were regularly produced.

1978

Central heating was fitted into the house. This made her studio usable all year and many more paintings were produced.

1983

Summer holiday to Southern Ireland. Visited many places in Co Cork & Co Kerry. Many successful Landscape paintings were produced.

1993

Diagnosed with Breast Cancer. Underwent surgery and post op treatments. Still continued painting when able to.

1995

Breast Cancer had developed into Stage 4 and spread to many parts of her body. Dies 17th March 1995 at St Winfred’s Hospice, Chichester.

Not quite the end of the story.

2003

Her husband arranged to hang a major exhibition of her work at the Oxmarket Gallery, in Chichester. He chose 110 examples of her work and framed some for the first time. It was a wonderful celebration of the variety of the work she had produced in her lifetime. An colour illustrated exhibition catalogue/book was printed showing many unseen paintings and drawings.

2005

Several paintings were given to two Cornish Gallery Museums.

2006

When her husband exhibited his artworks he would often hung a small selection of her work nearby. These were at several the Arundel Trail summer events at the Duff Gallery space, in Tarrent Street. The Forge Gallery, Walberton, West Sussex and the Bevere Gallery, Worcester.

2014

Death of her husband Eric James Mellon.

2021

A small exhibition of their Sussex landscapes exhibited by Tessa at the Oxmarket Gallery in Chichester.

2023

Several previously sold Cornish paintings came up for auction, not seen since 2004. Now safely back within the family and close friend.

2024

29 examples of her Cornish paintings held at the Penlee House Gallery and Museum in Penzance, Cornwall, to commemorate what would have been her 100th birthday.

2024 Her detailed Catalogue Raisonne is published, cataloguing and showing colour photos of over 600 of her artwork’s. It is viewable on her website www.martinathomas.co.uk