A father's works of art prove a revelation for son

Laid low after injuring his leg, Chris finally found time to begin cataloguing his late father's paintings – and the exercise proved a revelation.

"My father was a very private and unpretentious man," says Chris, who lives in Richmond.

"Sadly, he died in 2000, and it was only after his death that I really became aware of just how talented he was. Having spent the last year going through his work, I am determined to get his name known by a much wider audience."

Until his retirement, in 1977, John Webb was managing director of the Stanley Gibbons Group, and his artistic skills were put to good use designing stamps. However, the vast majority of his work was never seen in public, a wrong his son, Chris, now hopes to right with an exhibition in Harrogate next month.

"My father led an incredibly interesting life," says Chris. "Like a lot of people, normal life came to an abrupt end with the outbreak of the Second World War. While serving in Java, he was captured by the Japanese and remained a prisoner of war until 1945.

"It was on his return home that he began to paint. The freedom he found through art helped him to readjust to life after the war, and he experimented with a variety of styles."

John's work ranged from simple pencil sketches to large paintings on canvas and depicted everything from the realities of the steel industry to the wilds of Antarctica.

And as Chris began the long-job of cataloguing the works, the collection also threw up a completely unexpected find.

"Among my father's work I found a watercolour by another artist of the site where the Great Plague of London is believed to have originated in 1665," he says.

"It may be the only pictorial evidence of a building long since demolished and is not only a lovely painting, but a piece of social history."

Auctioneers Bonhams have been unable to put a value on the watercolour, but to Chris, the money doesn't matter.

"Finding the plague picture was exciting, but the thought of seeing my father's work hung in a proper venue for the first time is even more," says Chris. "It's my way of paying tribute to my father's talent, and I hope that finally he will get the recognition he so richly deserves."

The exhibition of work by John Webb, where a number of limited edition prints will be available to buy, will be held at the Empress on the Stray, Harrogate, on February 13 and 14.