The following is a review by Michael Brompton of 'Autumn at St Nicolas', published in 'The Journal/Pevensey Bay Life' (print and web) Issue 6, 16th November 2016

"My art hero for the month is Martin Williamson, the artist who works under the name Cobbybrook.

He is from Yorkshire. The depth and feeling in the painting is noteworthy. There is a sense of warmth and stillness. There is a carefully chosen colour palette. There is a gentle movement in the shapes. The structures are robust and sturdy but they seem alive to our gaze. The elements work together to create a marked sense of harmony. The composition encapsulates something about the cycle of life, but also something about the stillness of time and the sense of a season.

In my view, the work is exquisite. There is a special sense of time and place.

Pause and wonder. This painting is one day in the 800 year story of St. Nicolas church.

It is not just a churchyard. I can hear church bells and inside the church, somehow I know that if we wait a while, then a congregation will gather and evensong will begin. The work of Cobbybrook is known across the country and features in places such as the Guardian website. This painting was raffled in support of the fund raising efforts at St. Nicolas church in Pevensey in their 800th anniversary year. Postcards of the work are now on sale in the church.

Martin said about the work, “The 800 year old church needs a new roof, so I’m doing a batch of postcards for them, too – a tiny drop in the ocean but it all helps!”. He describes his paintings as being “about a sense of place”. They hang in private collections throughout the country and the collections of organisations such as the National Churches Trust and The Friends of Friendless Churches.

Not a local art hero, but an art hero to the local community. The work, ‘Autumn at St. Nicolas church’ by Cobbybrook, is my painting of the month."

Michael Brompton