Oaks Farm, Reepham. (© D. Yaxley.)
Oaks Farm, Reepham. This was an upstairs room in some outbuildings of a small farm and builder's yard near the centre of Reepham, the subject of a sale in 1970. This room had remained virtually untouched since the early years of the 20th century. The big chest in the centre, half-full of linseed oil, with the lightingof the room and the clutter of old pails, paint tins, planks, sieves, keys etc., posed an interesting challenge to the artist. I made a couple of arches from some seasoned oak planks that I bought at the sale and built them into my own house.
David Yaxley was born in Mundesley, brought up in Paston, and educated at The Paston Grammar School, North Walsham. After National Service in Egypt he took a degree in History at University College London. He has written and lectured on local history, art history, and architecture for the W.E.A. since 1964. His wife Susan, also an historian and writer, and his elder son Thomas run The Larks Press, which has now produced a hundred and thirty-five titles - history, memoirs, biography, natural history, maps, reference, quizzes, fiction - all connected with Norfolk by author or subject. David Yaxley has been painting seriously for over thirty years, and has had solo exhibitions of watercolours and drawings at Holkham, Hales Hall, Burnham Market, Litcham, Cley, Sheringham, The Crome Gallery and The Assembly House, Norwich. He is a regular exhibitor at The Royal Norfolk Show, and has contributed to many other exhibitions around the county. He has been Archivist at Houghton Hall since 1971.
DAVID YAXLEY Ordnance Farm, Guist Bottom, DEREHAM, Norfolk NR20 5PF
Tel: 01328 829207
Oaks Farm, Reepham, NHER 21059