AN EXHIBITION celebrating the volunteers of the Lyme Regis lifeboat crew is now open.

The exhibition, feature the volunteers of the Lyme Regis RNLI team, is being held at the Courtyard Gallery in the Town Mill Square from last Thursday, June 24.

The free exhibition is open daily for the next week, from 10am until 4pm.

The exhibition was put together by local artist, Maria Barbashina, who launched a new project earlier this year which saw her paint 26 members of the Lyme Regis RNLI lifeboat crew.

38-year-old Maria, who was born in Russia but now resides in Lyme Regis, began training as an artist at just 12-years-old before moving on to art colleges in Karelia and St Petersburg. She specialises in portraits and still life.

When she lived in Russia she sailed six-metre racing boats and helped to crew replica vessels, including tall ships, in her home town where shipbuilding was a major industry.

Whilst working on the project Maria decided to become a member of the volunteer shore crew herself. Her ambition is to be a sea-going crew member after her spell of shore duties.