PAINTINGS and drawings by Milan Ivanic spanning 50 years are on show in Gavagan Art's latest exhibition in its Settle Town Hall gallery.

From the Elbe to the Lune runs until December 23, and includes early drawings by Milan of the River Elbe from his schooldays and recent paintings of the River Lune near his home in Lancaster. Milan has lived in England since 1970, and has worked as a full time artist since 1986 when his wife Roz started working at Lancaster University in the linguistics department. Originally from the former Czechoslovakia, Milan had a formal art school training in Prague, at the Hollar School of Art and the prestigious Prague Academy of Fine Arts. Milan has immersed himself in the landscape of Lancashire, Yorkshire and Cumbria. For 30 years he has been out almost each day, getting to know the northern rivers and their landscape: from Ribblesdale in Yorkshire and the Lancashire Lune from its source in the Howgills, to its estuary into Morecambe Bay, walking its paths, surveying its valleys, drawing from its bridges, and getting to know its tributaries and surroundings.

Gallery owner Mary Gavagan said that the new exhibition brought a burst of colour and optimism to a northern winter as Milan’s paintings are executed in a bold and vibrant style: "I have been fortunate to have had the opportunity to exhibit his work for a number of years and I feel visitors to his forthcoming exhibition will be treated to Milan’s unique view of the northern landscape."