1920-1936: Recovery: "the sunshine artist": postscript

It is difficult to know what the trigger was that lifted Frank out of these periods of depression. Perhaps it was the fun and enjoyment of seeing his children growing up ( at this time they featured frequently in his paintings) and playing cricket, tennis and golf with them; he was also a violinist with the Penzance Orchestral Society. However, there is no doubt that in the 1920s he regained his enthusiasm and produced some of his best and most colourful work and was known locally as "the sunshine artist" exhibiting frequently at the Newlyn Art Gallery, the Royal Academy in London, The Salon in Paris, the Royal West of England Academy in Bristol and the St Ives Society of Artists.

Image: Frank Heath with his children (circa 1930).

As you will see in the following display of paintings produced in the 1920s and 1930s, Frank was very versatile in his range of subjects and equally at home whether painting his children, animals, interiors, his garden, land and seascapes.

In the mid 1930s, Frank's health deteriorated due to a combination of chest problems and the after effects of his illness during the War and from which he never really recovered. He died peacefully in June 1936 aged 63 and was buried in the family grave at St John's Church, Coulsdon, Surrey.

"The Times" as part of its obituary to Frank wrote

"...tall and handsome, he was for many years a popular member of the artistic colony in Newlyn, Cornwall and his most characteristic work was done in the Land's End district. Painting both the figure and landscape he was essentially an open air artist direct in his method with a good sense of values and a fine taste in colour".