Portrait depicts 'unsung hero' in over 60s display

An artist who created a coronation gift to the King from the Isle of Man has been included in an exhibition to celebrate people on the island over the age of 60.

A portrait of Graham Hall - also a co-founder of Manx Basking Shark Watch - is included in the exhibition 60 over 60 Faces of Mann, which is on display in Laxey.

Debra Tracey, who organised the exhibition to shine a spotlight on people's stories, said Mr Hall is a "very well-known and well-loved individual" on the island and "a very humble man."

Originally from Northumberland, he moved to the island in 2000 and four years later he set up Manx Basking Shark Watch with his wife Jackie, to help protect the species.

This led to an extensive tagging programme, work which increased researchers' understanding of the basking sharks.

In 2022 he and his wife stepped back for retirement and public sightings are now recorded by Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch.

In 2023, Mr Hall, who also runs a woodcraft workshop, was asked to create the wooden bowl which was given to King Charles as a coronation gift from the island.

The handcrafted bowl was inlaid with peregrine falcons made from recycled silver, created by Claire and Scott Pearse - a nod to a Manx tradition of gifting peregrine falcons to a new English monarch on their coronation.

Mr Hall said it was a privilege to create the bowl, which he said took "a good bit of work to complete".

He was also a founding member and chairman of Men in Sheds, which works to bring men together to tackle loneliness.

He said: "One of the things you notice when you get older is you can become invisible very quickly, and that's one of the things that I love about Debra's exhibition.

"It highlights people who have done something interesting."

Speaking of the portrait, he said it was "remarkable, what a unique thing to have," adding, "the concept of the project was genius, and I'm glad she has managed to pull it off."

He added: "Isn't that the wonderful thing about art, it becomes a record in history, not just the artefact itself but in so many more data sources, be it social media, books or publications."

Ms Tracey, who knows Mr Hall well, said: "He is a very humble man, people ask him to do things and he just quietly gets on with it quite magnificently.

"He's just a thoroughly lovely human and I just wanted to share that because he is one of those unsung heroes," she said.

The piece, which is made out of glass, took about three weeks to create.

She said it was Mr Hall's kindness and sense of humour that she tried to convey in the portrait.

Another man featured in 60 over 60 Faces of Mann was surgeon Sean Crerand, who moved to the island from Dublin about 40 years ago and has worked at Noble's Hospital ever since.

He said during his time on the island, he had treated "generations of the Manx public," and he was nominated by one of the other doctors at Noble's Hospital to be featured in the project.

"I was delighted and honoured to be selected, and then when I met the person who was painting me, we got on really well, and he was a past patient of mine," Mr Crerand said.

He said it had been a difficult year, after a bicycle crash left him hospitalised for a number of months, but he had been phasing in his return to work.

Speaking of the artwork he said: "I was delighted when I went to the exhibition and saw it, I thought he did an excellent job really."

Painter Martin Vaughan said he was "honoured" to be involved in the project and noted that Mr Crerand had operated on his sporting injuries over the past two or three decades.

"Over the years I have had many consultants at Noble's Hospital for my sporting injuries, but Sean Crerand is the only name that stands out to me," he said.

"It is just a testament to the man, he is so professional, he has such a gentle, calm and relaxing manner," he continued.

"If you're going to paint someone, it is nice to have some sort of connection with the sitter," Mr Vaughen continued.

The exhibition is on display at the Hodgson Loom Gallery in Laxey until the end of January.

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