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John Ashton
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John Ashton
John Ashton is not overly fond of cats. Yet this popular Devon artist and the feline species do share some similar characteristics. Certainly not in any manner of aloofness – John is one of the friendliest, most affable people you could meet. It has perhaps more to do with an implicit independence of spirit, a deep, longstanding fascination with birds … oh, and the fact that he has lived - and continues to live – several distinct lives, sometimes more than one at the same time.
An extremely talented wildlife artist with a solo London exhibition beckoning; well-known bird-watcher, with a monthly birdlife column in The Post; crewman in the Jeremy Gibson World Championship Power Boating team; part-time amateur actor and singer; theatre stage and set designer – John embraces all these roles with customary passion and skill. Yet his former lifestyle, prior to his move to South Devon nearly 30 years ago, was very different. Until July 1985, John was a roadie for some of the biggest rock bands around (in some cases, still the biggest!)
For someone who has worked with the likes of the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Queen and Robert Plant, John is suitably deprecating. “It wasn’t at all glamorous”, he says. “Roadies had to turn a hand to anything, from stage assembly to fencing to unblocking the toilets! There was and still is a strict hierarchy. Top spot goes to the guitar roadie - he is God and you don’t upset him! Then come the sound roadies, followed by the stage boys. My expertise was lighting and it was bottom of the heap, below the caterers even. Back then the lights had to be strung up and manoevred individually. We had ropes and climbing gear with which to climb the gantries and hoist them into position. Each light had to be ‘played’ separately during performances. They used tremendous wattages of power and got very hot, which then melted the coloured gel covering the front. We had to keep switching them off and replacing the gel as and when they cooled off. These days bands use LED lights which are pre-programmed and hardly use any power at all. But back in the 70s and 80s, it was hot, physical work. We had a lot of fun though!”
So which band did he consider the best to work for? John considers a long time. “That’s a tricky one, but probably the Rolling Stones”, he says eventually. “With them it was a case of ‘in it together’. Other stars were great, but after the gigs, they tended to scoot off immediately in their private helicopters. With the Stones, we had some brilliant back stage parties afterwards. It always felt new and exciting – even hedonistic perhaps …” (I think we’ll stop here).
John’s last major gig as a professional roadie was the Live Aid concert in July 1985. After that he decided he could afford to retire from a life on the European Tour circuit and devote himself full-time to his life-long hobby of painting. A few months later he arrived in Modbury for a 2-day visit to provide artwork for a local screen-printing business. He never went back. “I fell in love with the wildlife, the countryside and the allure of the sea”, he says. “I discovered at last what it was to have true peace of mind and, believe me, that’s worth much more than any fortune I could make as a roadie”.
John and his wife Dinah now live in Aveton Gifford, John’s studio, which he built himself, commanding a stupendous, birds-eye view out over the valley behind their cottage. Right now he is hard at work preparing for his first solo exhibition, which takes place a year hence in the auspicious halls of the Lloyds Building in London. “I was invited!” he says in amazement, modest of his prodigious talent, three short-list nominations for the David Shepherd Wildlife Artist of the Year award and his establishment as one of Devon’s foremost artists.
“In order to put together a large enough collection I’m working in acrylic pretty much all the time”, he says. “It’s great - much quicker to use, dries easily and is cheaper, from the point of view of the artist and buyer. It’s also good for a ‘photo-real’ finish. I like the clean, sharp lines you can make. Wildlife art will never be a ‘contemporary’ genre, but with acrylic you can obtain a bold, highly stylized finish, which could be interpreted as contemporary-like”.
Birds remain his favourite creatures with rich sources of inspiration always to be found along the banks of the river Avon. He prefers bird watching locally; often in company with his old pal Eric the fag filcher who lives two doors down. “Eric is always jetting off somewhere distant in pursuit of some rare species, but I haven’t the time”, says John. No indeed! Quite apart from his work with Jeremy Gibson’s World Championship Power Boat team – they were recently in Scandinavia – there is also the small matter of the Modbury Amateur Dramatic Society’s Christmas Show to prepare for. John gives his own time freely to organise the lighting, set design, building and painting and, of course, he will be acting and singing his heart out in one of the major roles. “I’m a failed musician”, he laughs. “All roadies are failed musicians!”
Does he ever hanker after his old life? “Oh, I keep my hand in with local bands”, he says. “Nobody famous – well, maybe not yet. Although there was that time I did the lights for Robert Plant and his band. They played Kingsbridge as part of their world tour. Yes really! I thought it was a wind up too at first, but it’s true. I took Robert to the Hope and Anchor for a quiet pint. It was way before mobile phones were invented, but bush telegraph did the job just as well and the place was crammed within half an hour…” And John launches into another hilarious anecdote from one of his many past lives.