Milton Hill and Troy Landy are at it again! The talented duo — Mr. Hill, a mixed media artist and wood carver, and Mr. Landy, a painter — have joined forces for the third time to present a major exhibition of their work, this time as part of the Masterworks Foundation’s current, ‘Art in the Gardens’ series.

The duo have been working towards the event since early this year, and as always are looking forward to sharing their creativity with the public.

Mr. Landy, the quadraplegic victim of a hit-and-run accident at age 16, spends a great deal of time at his ‘Summerhaven’ residence creating the meticulously detailed, acrylic paintings for which he is known. Currently “grounded” because his present wheelchair is too heavy to access the home’s current bus, the artist finds inspiration for his paintings from a variety of sources, including photographs, newspapers, magazines and the surrounding scenery, all of which are then worked through his imagination and onto his canvases.

It is, therefore, no surprise that his latest body of work is an eclectic mix of subjects, and includes local architecture, flowers, birds, transportation, and brilliantly coloured abstracts.

Mr. Hill, a former boatbuilder who is well known for his fine Bermuda cedar carvings, including scaled replicas of various local craft, says visitors to the exhibition can expect to see Bermuda schooners, fitted dinghies, and a gig among his latest body of work.

“Charles Ratteray came from Scotland and built two boats in Herman’s Bay, the Morning Star and Rose of Sharon,>and I have done a model of one of them,” he says.

Mr. Hill will also be showing “eight or nine” paintings, as well as cedar wall plaques featuring carved Bermuda boats, and “a new medium, which will only be revealed on the night”.

The only hint he gives is that he has created something which is “uniquely Bermudian” and somehow linked to “old Bermuda”.

“As an artist you are constantly innovative,” is all he will say.

Like Mr. Hill, Mr. Landy is entirely self-taught. As a child, he was always interested in drawing, but had never painted. It was during his five-year rehabilitation at Shriner’s Hospital in Philadelphia following the accident that his interest in art was rediscovered and encouraged.

Sometime after returning home, Mr. Landy began working on his art again, and over the years the quality of his work has continued to improve to such an extent that Mr. Hill now says: “Troy’s work is impeccable. He has really taken it to another level.”

Physical limitations require Mr. Landy to weave brushes through his fingers, and because he cannot use a slanted easel but paints on his lap, the size of his canvases are limited to what fits between the arms of his motorised wheelchair.

Lady Vereker was his first customer, and he is proud to say that one of his paintings now hangs in Government House.

“Lady Vereker and Sir John are always interested in knowing what I am doing, and if I need any help they are very genuine people,” he says. In fact, the couple have been instrumental in replacing his previous motorised wheelchair.

Mr. Landy also pays tribute to professional artist Sheilagh Head, who is his mentor, and to his co-exhibitor Mr. Hill, whom he says has always been there for him.

In fact, Mr. Hill was anonymously commissioned to make all of the Bermuda cedar frames for Mr. Landy’s latest paintings, and these have a history of their own.

“The old cedar came from the former Ridgeway Home, and the younger cedar came from Government House,” Mr. Hill says.

A clearly delighted Mr. Landy says of them: “The frames Milton comes up with mesmerise me. He never ceases to amaze me. I know he’ll always come up with something that blows my mind.”

The duo first met years ago when Mr. Hill worked at ‘Summerhaven’, but the professional relationship blossomed into an artistic one. Their first joint exhibition was at the Smith’s Parish residence, and includes several at Masterworks.

Like Mr. Hill, Mr. Landy’s work has found its way into homes here and abroad, and Mr. Hill’s work is also sought after by the corporate world, much of it commissioned.

Thanks to making a disc of his art which he gave to a visiting art teacher, children in her Florida art class held a ‘Troy Landy Day’ during which they copied the paintings. Subsequently, the artist received 21 individual letters from each student, which touched him deeply.

“I really made me feel good to know that I have kids looking up to me,” he says. “I like to give back to children and encourage them if they have an interest in art.”

Recently, students from CedarBridge visited ‘Summerhaven’ on a project, and were fascinated by his paintings, and each left with one of his posters. Later, he was invited to hand out prizes to the top male and female art students at the Academy, but transportation problems prevented him from accepting the honour.

Indeed, while life is not easy for the quadraplegic artist, Mr. Landy is grateful to all who support his artistic endeavours, because paints and other art supplies are expensive. He pays tribute to Dano Outerbridge, who has undertaken to purchase these for him.

“I am always looking for someone to sponsor me, and Dano is a young man, but whenever I need paints or anything he’s there for me,” he says. “We met through a another ‘Summerhaven’ resident, took to each other, and have been friends ever since.”

Meanwhile, the duo are looking forward to Friday’s opening of ‘Reunited’ in the Rose Garden gallery at Masterworks in the Botanical Gardens, Paget. It continues through May 10.

Landy, Hill team up again for major art exhibition