The heron and the heroine: A cute story without a happy ending.

Today, 4 February, is World Cancer Day. Unlike other events, it is not a celebration. In fact, there is little to celebrate. As the first quarter of the 21st century draws to a close, humanity continues to struggle relentlessly against this terrible disease that skews the lives of millions of people around the world, despite the advances and efforts of doctors and scientists who are desperately seeking a cure. World Cancer Day is a day of awareness. Hopefully, in a near future, these research efforts will bear fruit, and so many people with cancer will be saved, no matter where they live. My personal contribution to this day is a short story, the story of a woman who fought against cancer. 

The heroine of my story is Margaret, an artist like so many others in this blog. Her artwork does not appear in art books, very few of the lesser known artists appear in them, nor of course in art collections, not even in the local ones, although some of their paintings exceed some of the artworks on display. Like Margaret, there are many British artists who devoted their lives to what they loved most, painting their native land, and whose artworks are still not valued enough. Finding one of their paintings at a flea market can sometimes lead you to discover a unique life. Other times it is difficult to find clues that will help you find some information. A second artwork by the artist often provides this necessary clues, but occasionally that other part of the puzzle is missing, and artwork and artist remain a mystery. In the next two posts I will talk about a couple of paintings I found at Portobello Road market, and that led me to discover two amazing stories.

The story behind this first artwork is certainly unexpected. It begins on 7th February 2020 at Portobello Road, with a 'grey heron in a marsh scene'. That, at least, could be the name of this untitled and undated original watercolour on paper by artist Margaret Witts, who did sign the painting at the bottom left. The measures of the picture are 358 x 258 mm, and I was lucky enough to have it cross my path to work.

 

The image of this wetland with a crane or heron led me to discover a little more about this charming elderly woman, actually named Margaret Evelyn Witts (November 13, 1931-December 1, 2018). Margaret was passionate about oil and watercolour painting. She lived in Shirley, Solihull (West Midlands), a town near Birmingham. In her later years she submitted several entries to the EAC Over 60s Art Awards competition, a UK based housing advice charity run by EAC (Elderly Accommodation Counsel). The aim of the awards is to showcase and reward the work of elder artists, over 60 years old.

 

At the age of 86 the twists and turns of life led to Margaret's appearance on a BBC TV programme with famous journalist Victoria Derbyshire. Three months earlier, celebrities such as Coleen Nolan, Michelle Heaton and Victoria Derbyshire herself had captured the heart of the nation when they opened up about their experiences with cancer on ITV's show The Real Full Monty: Ladies’ Night. Just as BBC journalist Derbyshire spoke openly about the symptoms that led to her breast cancer diagnosis, Margaret was able to identify those same symptoms in her own breast, and decided to attend her NHS health centre, where she was sadly diagnosed with breast cancer.

ITV's show The Real Full Monty: Ladies’ Night.

Later, Margaret contacted the BBC journalist by email to explain that, thanks to her TV show, she had started a treatment against cancer: “Dear Victoria, I want to thank you for saving my life”, she wrote. In June 2018 Victoria Derbyshire decided to meet up with her, along with Maren Marshall, who also got in touch to her. The three women chatted over tea and cakes at Margaret Witts' house.

Maren Marshall, Margaret Witts and Victoria Derbyshire. Copyright: BBC.

In that BBC2 TV programme of the meeting we can see that, behind Margaret, there is an easel with one of her award-winning paintings, and a pot full of brushes.

Margaret Witts and her painting corner. Copyright: BBC.

There is no doubt that Margaret was a woman with a great desire to fight and live, and to express herself as an artist, and also that 'Grey Heron in a wetland' is one of her best artworks. Unfortunately, Margaret was only able to survive the illness for a few months.

That is Margaret's story, although it could well be the story of many other cancer victims, people with hopes and dreams and projects that fail to overcome the disease. Hopefully, advances in research will soon allow other Margaret's to continue doing what they most enjoy.