Two Artists, One Man: Mike Willdridge's Love Letter to Poundbury

His exhibition at the Duchess of Cornwall Inn runs until February 2nd.

Credit: Mike Willdridge

Walk into the Duchess of Cornwall Inn and you'll find the walls alive with Mike Willdridge's paintings, many showcasing Poundbury - but you might be surprised to learn that the artist behind them lives two creative lives.

"I have an alter ego, Mick O'Hea - my mother's maiden name - and he does entirely abstract work." Mike says, and smiles. "That arrangement makes me quite happy. I've got one part of me doing abstract, and another part doing more representational work. Some people think my art is by different people, but I quite like doing different things."

After a life spent doing different things - graphic design, then 17 years in the Army across multiple countries, 17 years teaching art to children in Kent and Devon, then years more teaching art to adults internationally - perhaps it's no surprise that Mike's creative output refuses to be contained in a single style.

Finding Home in an Unlikely Place

When Mike and his wife Sue were looking to retire, Poundbury wasn't on their radar. "Initially when we first visited, I felt what a weird place this is," Mike admits. But something clicked. "It appealed to me in an Edward Hopper-esque kind of way. I really like Hopper's landscapes and their essential loneliness."

He pauses. "But that's just on the surface here in Poundbury, because really life here is all about community."

What they wanted was practical: a south-facing garden for Sue, and studio potential for Mike. They found the garden, and a lovely house with a garage they converted into his workspace. They also found a community that reminded Mike of something familiar. "I've observed that people who come here really want to make it work. Sue and I found straight away that we made connections and friends. There's an  expatriate feel to it that I recognise from my life in the Army."

Light, Shadows, and Ancient Footpaths

Mike enjoys sketching and painting Poundbury and its many different faces. The Duchess of Cornwall Inn is a particular focus. "It has fantastic light with those big windows casting their shadows, especially in winter," he says. When David Kingman of Art at the Duchess invited him to curate a collection for the Duchess, Mike was delighted.

Credit: Mike Willdridge

But his favourite Poundbury haunt might surprise you. "I love the spirituality of Maiden Castle. I like to go there at first light and then walk Poundbury after that. I try to imagine the people who used to live here hundreds of years ago - I think they would recognise the route I take even now. I like to visualise people up there and how they lived with each other."

It's that connection between ancient and modern, between loneliness and community, between what appears on the surface and what lies beneath, that fascinates Mike about Poundbury as a subject.

"It's a bit deceptive when you first get here - it feels like a film set, a bit kitsch. That campanile sticking out in the middle of the countryside looks odd. But I feel the then Prince Charles got this project mostly right, and mostly right in ways that count: focusing on what fosters community and what makes people connect with each other."

Inspiration Close to Home

When he's not painting Poundbury's new streetscapes or ancient Maiden Castle, Mike loves creating children's books for his grandchildren: "They are my great inspiration, I think they're fantastic." He enjoys creating personalised birthday and Christmas cards for each of his eight grandchildren. "It takes up quite a lot of my time," he laughs, "But it's absolutely worth it!"

We don't know how Mike manages to fit everything in his day, especially since he also serves on the board of Dorchester Arts. "I'm really pleased with how the new space in the Corn Exchange has developed, especially the new gallery. I'm enjoying helping curate exhibitions there with Sasha Constable and Mark Tattersall. I would encourage everyone to go and visit it!" 

The Road Not (Yet) Taken

Ask Mike if there's anything he might have done differently, and his answer comes quickly: "Stage design. If I should come back again - but not as a cockroach - I think I'd like to do that." He grins. "I like working with a group of people doing something together. The challenge of moving something massive around, like an opera set, the logistics of that really appeal to me, perhaps because of my Army background. Creating other worlds."

For now, though, Mike is focused on caring for Sue, being present for his grandchildren, supporting Dorchester Arts, and continuing to explore both sides of his artistic personality - the representational Mike and the abstract Mick O'Hea.

See the Exhibition

Mike's collection at the Duchess of Cornwall Inn runs until February 2nd. Among the various paintings, you'll find his expressions of Poundbury's public spaces - the Duchess itself, Bonjour Café, PiPs on the Great Field - all captured in that distinctive light that first drew him here. The winter shadows he loves are on full display.

Mike is open to commissions and can be contacted through his website at www.mikewilldridge-artist.com.

Next time you're at the Duchess, look closely at Mike's art. You're seeing Poundbury through the eyes of someone exploring duality - loneliness and connection, surface and depth, the abstract and the representational. Perhaps Mike found home in this unlikely place because it offers him both: those Edward Hopper-esque moments of solitary observation, and the vibrant community spirit he and Sue quickly discovered. 

Credit: Mike Willdridge

Visit the Duchess of Cornwall Inn  Exhibition ends February 2nd.

Visit the Corn Exchange