A NEW artwork unveiled last month at Homeyards Botanical Gardens has been awarded the prestigious Denise James Art Trophy by South West in Bloom.

The artwork in question, created by Michelle Greenwood Brown and Alison Miles, is a colourful octagonal seat with naturalistic ceramic decoration.

The design of the seat sought to reflect the many changing colours of the gardens, while also providing a place where the community could come together and socialise.

Each piece of the mosaic was inspired by something growing or living in the garden, the tiles were then meticulously designed, fired, painted and arranged on each panel of the seat.

Awarded by South West in Bloom, the Denise James Trophy is awarded to the judges’ favourite artwork of the competition.

Terry Porter, Manager and Editor of South West in Bloom, said: ‘The trophy is named after our previous secretary of South West in Bloom, Denise James, who passed away in 2019. She was very keen on the use of architecture, and it was named in honour of her service to South West in Bloom.

‘The judging teams in the South West put forward twelve items of art which were assessed by a panel of judges, and the Homeyard Botanical Gardens seat was the unanimous winner. Congratulations to all involved!’

At the same time, the volunteers of Friends of Homeyards Botanical Gardens also received their certificate for 2022 from the RHS Britain in Bloom It’s Your Neighbourhood Award, being placed in the top category of outstanding.

Alison Melville-Shreeve, Chair of the Friends of Homeyards Botanical Gardens, said: ‘We’re thrilled to report that the artists Michelle and Alison, together with the Friends of the gardens, who commissioned the work, have won the Denise James Art Trophy.

‘An impressive trophy was presented by the local representative of the organisation Richard Taylor.

‘Huge congratulations to the artists for this welcome accolade judged against a varied entry from all over the South West.’