AN ARTIST has offered to help restore a damaged community mosaic featuring prominent sights with historic connections in Tavistock.

The Tavistock Communiy Mosaic was erected on the outside of the Tavistock Pannier Market after being designed by a professional artist and created by a wide range of people from all backgrounds.

The colourful mosaic was made in 2006 as an interesting and informative focal point, and has been moved once to the other sdie of the market.

However, although it has survived well, the lower part of the wooden framed artwork is showing signs of degredation due to weathering. The underneath of the plywood backing is now explosed on one corner and the lower tiles are becoming unattached from the wood, making the rest of the mosaic vulnerable to water getting behind the loosening tiles.

Andy Cairns, West Devon Art Workshops founder and leader, said: “This is a prominent piece of public art and shows off how the community can contribute to its surroundings in a creative way. You can see how each location featured has been undertaken by people of varying abilities. Also, it works very well in the way each scene fits together by interlocking imaginatively, rather than simply as blocks of pictures.”

He suggested his arts workshops, which bring people and communities together through art, could possibly restore the mosaic through a community project: “To restore it properly, rather than merely mend it, would require it being taken off the wall and the backing taken off and replaced. Otherwise it will only get worse and the tiles all come unattached which would be a big shame considering all the work that has gone into it.”

Town Cllr Ursula Mann thanked Andy for his offer an added: “The mosaic needs mending because it identifies what is important to the community in the town. It certainy needs restoring for the long term because it helps promote the town to visitors. A lot of peope do see it in this location. It’s lasted a long time, but needs some expert care and attention.”

Artist Emma Spring, a prominent West Devon mosaic artist, was commissioned by the town council to create the mosaic and was overseen by project coordinator Helen McFarlane. A leaflet explaining the mosaic when, first unveiled, said: “A wide range of people, of all ages and abilities from the community, were involved in creating a large mosaic that depicts twenty prominent sights which have heritage plaques attached.

“These include locations of archaeological and industrial interest, as well as commercial buildings and schools sites that have existed since the 1830s. The mosaic is in an ideal location for communicating and ceelbrating our local heritage.”

A town council spokesman said that when any request for the restoration work would be considered.