PRIZE winners have been announced for this year’s St Barbe Museum & Art Gallery Open Exhibition, which showcases the best paintings, prints and drawings from around the region.

The panel of judges, which included professional artists Bonnie Brown, Tim Craven and Gerry Dudgeon, were impressed with the very high standard of work submitted and have chosen 79 to be hung in the final exhibition.

The Clarke Willmott Award of £250 was given to Victoria Garland for her etching Winter Hedgerow; the Mackenzie and Mackenzie Award of £200 was given to Linda Penny for the pastel Flow 2 and the Mary Symons Memorial Award of £250 for best print was given to Kate Watkins for the gocco screenprint with chine collé Brighton Pier.

The Beaulieu Fine Art Prize of £50 worth of picture framing for best work by a non-professional artist went to Andreozanne Mendham for Alderney Rock Pool (dyes, bleach, gouache on paper) and this year’s new prize, the Coastal Gallery Award of £300 for best contemporary abstract, was given to Cathy Beggs for Thin Blue Line (acrylic).

Works highly commended by the judges included those from Barry Freeman, Philippa Bambach, Eric Hoath, Sheila Goodman, Alexandrina Smith and D. Roberts.

The selling exhibition, in Lymington from tomorrow until July 19, is open to both amateur and professional artists and includes a diverse range of subject matters and styles.

Tickets to the museum, which is open between 10am and 4pm, Monday to Saturday, cost £4 for adults, £3 for senior citizens and students, £2 for children aged five to 15, and £10 for a family of two adults and up to four children; under fives are admitted free of charge.