Northumberland artist bottles happiness thanks to pandemic

Fin Bowron had worked as an enforcement agent for banks and local authorities mainly on Tyneside since he left school, until, that is, the Covid lockdowns forced him, along with many others, to re-evaluate his life.

After much deliberation, he chose to retire from his stressful job and tackle a new venture.

The 57-year-old has been making sea-related fibreglass and driftwood artwork, including large sharks, crabs, lobster, fish and shells, as a pastime for as long as he can remember.

But coronavirus restrictions enforced a period confined to home and gave self-taught artist Fin the motivation for creating a new range of models.

With no pubs or restaurants to visit in the first lockdown, Berwick-born Fin, who moved to Boulmer in 1999, started experimenting and hit upon the idea of giant beer bottles, getting inspiration from travelling around the world and seeing enormous models marking features or industries in Australian towns, such as lobsters, koala bears and pineapples.

He firstly made a mould for a 6ft bottle, plus a cap and the froth which is pouring down the side. The process of making the stylish models could begin, starting with a thin gel paint, then fibreglass resin.

The bottles were painted and airbrushed to give shades and depth, then vinyl graphics added to customise them for a particular make of beer or wine, the operation taking about a week from start to finish.

He also produced half-bottles that can be placed flat against a wall and has since introduced ones with holders for displaying actual bottles, making them more functional.

He then moved on to 7ft wine bottles to add a new dimension to the range.

Fin, who has been coxswain of Boulmer Volunteer Lifeboat for around 15 years, initially targeted breweries, pubs and restaurants, giving them an eye-catching, quirky way to promote the beer or wine on sale. He included brands from Britain, Ireland, China, India, Italy and Greece to cover several varieties of cuisine.

But he can also customise them with pictures of individuals or couples as bespoke gifts for birthdays, anniversaries or other special occasions.

“They lend themselves to home bars, ‘man caves’ or ‘woman caves’, either free-standing, wall-mounted, indoors or outdoors with whatever artwork people want,” he said. “They would also look good at festivals or alongside mobile catering vans.

“It would be great to make a business out of the hobby I have loved doing for years, although I wouldn’t want it to interfere with my passion for boating, fishing and generally enjoying the wonderful coast here.

"The important thing for me is that I have left the stressful work life behind,” said Fin, whose dad Ken Bowron, now 82, is a goalscoring legend at Berwick Rangers, netting a club record 50 goals in the 1963-64 season.

Some of Fin’s artwork can be seen around the county, including at the Jolly Fisherman pub and Robson’s traditional fish smokers, both at Craster.

Fin is selling the half-bottles for £595 and full bottles for £695. His other sea-related artwork costs from £250. For more examples of the designs and their uses, visit his website at sharkfin.uk or Instagram @sharkfindesign.