A PAINTER from Malmesbury graced the nation’s television screens last week as she took part in the popular Sky Arts programme Landscape Artist of the Year.

Nicki Heenan, 53, said she was “honoured” to have been a part of the programme, which provides a public platform to the very best landscape artists in the country.

She was tasked with painting at Stowe Gardens, Buckinghamshire, but weather conditions were so bad however the pod Nicki was working in collapsed, washing away her painting.

She was left having to paint on a small table rather than her easel as the production team frantically tried to repair the damage.

As a result, her canvas got wet and it was an uphill struggle from there on in, however Nicki insists she enjoyed the experience.

“Life would be boring if everything came to plan,” she said.

“Dealing with random situations and ploughing on through is where you really demonstrate if you are a winner.

“Being part of the programme was an experience that I was honoured to be part of.”

Having been chosen to feature in the programme from a few thousand entries, Nicki made it through the final three of her heat, but didn’t quite make it through to the final round.

She received praise from the judges and also the programme’s host, Frank Skinner, who said her painting was “beautiful”.

Judging the work on offer were art historian Kate Bryan, independent curator Kathleen Scoriano, and portrait artist Tai-Shan Schierenberg.

“The judges were very complementary and they deliberated for nearly two hours to make the final decision, the longest the camera crew could remember,” she said.

“Joan Bakewell was interested in the reasoning behind my painting and we chatted at length about Capability Brown and gardens.”

The realities of being part of a television programme were “eye-opening” for Nicki, who said her pod collapsing wasn’t aired on television.

“Being part of this process was an eye-opener as to how filming and editing works to create a reality that is entertainment,” she said.

“The film company want you to be interesting on camera.

“If this happens in art then one can only imagine what happens in politics.”

To find out more about Nicki’s art visit nickiheenan.com