A portrait by an Isle of Wight artist capturing wartime memories is helping to raise money for a good cause.
The painting, created by Francesca Adami, features 100-year-old Isle of Wight resident and Second World War veteran Alec Penstone, and is being used to support Blind Veterans UK, a charity for vision-impaired ex-servicemen and women.
Mr Penstone served in the Royal Navy and was aboard the HMS Campania during the D-Day invasion, where he helped sweep for mines and detect U-boats.
He also completed 11 Arctic Convoy missions.
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Ms Adami said: "I noticed that one person had repeatedly featured. He looked extraordinarily like my mother’s brother, my Uncle John.
"Like John, the man in the paper had signed up to the Royal Navy at 16 and was even sent off on the same missions – D-Day, the Arctic Convoys and the Far East.
"Sadly, my uncle had gone long before. But this man was still very much alive. His name was Alec Penstone."
The connection felt personal for Ms Adami, whose father was an optician, and she decided to paint Mr Penstone’s portrait to raise funds for Blind Veterans UK.
She said: "Alec is one of our last true heroes, a gentlemen till the end and an absolute legend.
"I hope everyone who sees his portrait is compelled to stop and allow Alec to draw them into his world, to share a glimpse of what he went through and sacrificed, day after terrifying day, for six years of his young life to enable us to be free."
Ms Adami spent four months meeting with Mr Penstone to complete the portrait, during which time they talked about his experiences during the war, including D-Day and the Arctic Convoys.
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Limited edition prints of the portrait are now available for purchase, with 80 signed copies released to mark 80 years since the end of the Second World War.
Each print is signed by both Mr Penstone and Ms Adami.
80 per cent of the proceeds will go to Blind Veterans UK, which has supported Mr Penstone since 2020.
The original portrait will go on display at the D-Day Story Museum in January.
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