Artist Svetlana Cameron unveils first Isle of Man portrait exhibition

The exhibition will include a commissioned portrait of the Isle of Man's former chief minister Tony Brown

Russian-born artist Svetlana Cameron will unveil her first solo exhibition of classical portraits in the Isle of Man this week.

The exhibition will include official portraits of the Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man and former House of Keys Speaker Tony Brown.

Ms Cameron said: "My work usually goes straight from easel to client so this is a very rare and very exciting."

The three-week show will open at the Sayle gallery on Wednesday.

Nearly 30 portraits from 17 private and public collections have been borrowed especially for the exhibition.

The exhibition is part of the Island of Culture programme of events and will be opened by the President of Tynwald Clare Christian.

Nearly 30 portraits from 17 private and public collections have been borrowed especially for the show in Douglas.

All have been created in the past four years and each artwork took several months to paint.

Ms Cameron said: "This show is an opportunity for the people of the Isle of Man to see my works that are normally hidden away in private collections".

The collection of private and public commissions has never been viewed before by the public

Amongst the works will be several paintings of prominent politicians and Tynwald Day scenes.

She added: "It has been amazing knowing my paintings are becoming part of Manx history and it will be nice to have them all on display for everyone to see."

A feature in the exhibition will also give visitors an insight into the artist's studio practices.

Ms Cameron has painted several artworks inspired by Tynwald Day, a theme she plans to explore in more depth in coming years