Working at sea inspires artist’s charity exhibition

A diabetic painter is employing his artistic talents to raise money to help people with the condition through his latest exhibition.

The exhibition, which opens today upstairs in the Islesburgh Community Centre, is the fourth by Lerwick resident Balazs Onhausz.

The Hungary native, who lives with type one diabetes, spoke of the difficulties of managing the condition and said he hoped to raise money for others living with it.

“I know how hard it is sometimes to keep it under control, it’s a daily challenge really. There’s no holidays and no rest, it’s a condition you have to face every day.”

Onhausz is perhaps best known for his daredevil stunts scaling the likes of Scalloway Castle while kitted out in superhero outfits. But he is also a painter of considerable talent.

His previous exhibits have seen him paint picture-perfect likenesses of musicians such as Jimi Hendrix and movie monsters such as Frankenstein.

This time Onhausz has taken inspiration from something a little closer to home, his job with Scottish Sea Farms.

The centrepiece is a large painting which depicts the artist and ten of his colleagues with remarkable accuracy. The piece is titled Ocean’s Eleven.

“The whole idea comes from I like my job very much and I thought I’d like to make some memory of it”, he said of the work.

Though Onhausz does not expect to shift this £1,000 piece, and would not begrudge keeping it as a memento for him and his colleagues, the exhibit also includes some more affordable photographic prints.

The artist received sponsorship from his employers towards the cost of producing the prints, which include photos of orca sightings among other images of life working at sea.

Onhausz’s exhibit runs until 31st July. Examples of his artwork can be found on his Facebook page, Balazs Onhausz Art.