A brush with speed

IT'S rare that lovers of art and motorcycle road racing meet in the same room but a new exhibition at Ballymoney Town Hall will be challenging all the usual preconceptions.

A Brush with Speed is an exhibition organised by Ballymoney artist Lee Robinson (PICTURED RIGHT) who is renowned for his paintings of some of Ireland's most famous road racing heroes.

This will be a unique opportunity to see all his work brought together in one room and it is certain to appeal to the thousands of bikers who come to the North West 200 every year.

The pictures include riders past and present painted on canvas and, uniquely, as a motif on a Lambeg Drum!

Alongside Lee's work will be contributions from other acclaimed local artists, all on the subject of road racing.

The exhibition will be a poignant experience for Lee as his father, Mervyn Robinson, and his uncles, Joey and Robert Dunlop, were all successful riders who were tragically killed while racing.

Lee has used his artistic gift to express his personal bond with motorcycle racing.

This has helped him to create paintings that vividly portray all the excitement and thrills that make it such a popular sport. His brushwork captures a split second in a race; a moment that is gone in an instant but is immediately memorable.