TRIBUTES have been paid following the death of a Southampton artist and teacher.

Peter Folkes spent his life inspiring budding artists across the county.

The 95-year-old father of two who lived in Swaythling died on January 7.

His son Andrew Folkes, 65, has paid tribute to his dad on behalf of his family and his brother Richard, 68.

Andrew said: "He will be greatly missed."

Peter Folkes first trained as a painter at art college in Bristol but his studies were interrupted by the Second World War during which he served as a draughtsman in North Africa, Sicily and Italy and was mentioned in dispatches.

Peter and his wife Muriel who passed away in 2016 came to Southampton in 1950.

He worked an art teacher at King Edward VI Grammar School and was the senior art master there until he left in 1964.

He then went on to be a lecturer in painting, at Southampton College of Art from 1964-78 and from 1978 to his retirement in 1989 he was Head of Fine Art, at Southampton Institute of Higher Education, now Southampton Solent University.

His wife, whom he married in 1949, worked at the booking office at what was the Gaumont and is now the Mayflower Theatre.

While at King Edward VI School, in his spare time, Peter painted local scenes: Southampton Water, the Itchen and Test estuaries, dockland, shipyards, the Itchen Floating Bridge, and a number of street scenes.

Peter's artwork was also honoured in 2016 when the City Art Gallery accepted one of his art works into its collection after a campaign was launched by some of his former students

Thirty of his ex pupils were invited to the gallery to purchase the painting called The Railway Crossing .

It cost them £600 and the group of former students formally presented the painting to the gallery on Peter's 93rd birthday.

Andrew said: "He was a very active and talented artist and he contributed a lot to the city.

"He stopped painting as he got older due to arthritis.

"We were very close and me and my family will miss him greatly."