A painting by a Frome artist has been shortlisted for a national football art award and will feature in a touring exhibition.
Danny Markey’s image, which captures a football pitch in Mells, has been selected for the Football Art Prize and will go on display at the Millennium Gallery in Sheffield from 15th June before touring to the National Football Museum in Manchester from November to February 2027.
“I just love that image of the goalposts and the symmetry of it,” said Danny. “There is something very ordinary about the fields, it could have been painted anywhere.”
Danny, who supports Frome Town FC and attends matches regularly, lived in Mells for about 14 years and said he was inspired by the pitch, which holds fond memories.
“Our house actually backed onto it and my children spent a lot of time there,” he said. “I used to play football and all my three children play, so there are quite a lot of footballers in our family.”
Danny is also a lecturer at the Royal Drawing School in London and said he is inspired to capture ‘everyday ordinariness’.
“I like subjects that are part of everyday life and things we are familiar with, but also have a kind of beauty and mystery to them at the same time,” he said.
The Football Art Prize has selected more than 75 works from around 900 entries submitted by artists across the UK and internationally.
