A COLLECTION of paintings from a Dorset artist will go under the hammer at a Crewkerne auctioneers..

The selection of sought after watercolours from noted painter Ron Jesty will go on sale at Lawrences Auctioneers in Crewkerne, on Friday, January 20.

Mr Jesty was born in Weymouth in 1926 where he worked as a draughtsman and graphic designer for thirty years before talking up watercolour painting full-time at the age of 52.

In 1982 he became a member of the Royal Society of British Artists and was celebrated for his work focused on Dorset, Somerset, Devon and Cornwall, with occasional trips to Scotland.

He spent the latter part of his life in Yeovil, where he relocated with his wife Margaret, before passing away in June last year.

Specialist Richard Kay, who sorted and catalogued the work for Lawrences, said: "Jesty's work shows that he was a fine technician in this demanding medium but also that he was able to marry his draughtsman's eye with a truly artistic understanding of all his various subjects.

"He was justifiably quietly proud of his ability to resolve self-imposed compositional difficulties in order to find a good balance between representation and modest innovation"

A regular exhibitor at the Royal West of England and occasionally at the Royal Academy and Royal Watercolour Society too, Jesty also showed his work in many one man shows in the West Country.

Richard added: "He found teaching at the College of Art in Yeovil to be a pleasurable sideline and stressed the importance of rigorous method and good fundamental skills to his students.

"He liked to compare the challenges and satisfaction of completing a picture with the complexity of a game of chess.

"This methodical approach resulted in his work being used as illustrations in many publications on the practice of art."

The selection on offer at Lawrences comprises 25 lots, including impressive individual framed works as well as appealing folios of unframed sketches.

One lot on offer for an estimated £100 to £200 even contains sketches, his easel, a pot of his brushes and a wad of press cuttings.