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Beach Hut

Whitstable beach hut

London-based artist Jo Oakley bought her Whitstable beach hut when she was in her twenties and her two daughters were small. “It was the best thing I’ve ever done. I feel like I’m off on holiday every weekend. Maybe it’s due to the sea air but I come back full of ideas and energy.” As a collector of vintage furniture and ceramics, the beach hut reflects her taste for colour and quirky mid-century artefacts. "My paintings are all about my surroundings and sometimes I find a particular view or piece I've found so interesting that I paint them over and over again - each one different in some way or another. The same goes for the sailing boats that race up and down the estuary - they are part of my world and often feature in my work." Jo has seen Whitstable morph from a quiet fishing port into a fashionable weekend destination with property prices to match. Her hut cost £250 - currently they sell for around £25.000.