A community has come together to recreate a magical fairy land in a County Durham woodland after vandals tried to destroy it.
Artist Karen Gray spent months painting “fairy doors” on the trees in South Moor Colliery Park, in Stanley.
But she was devastated when she discovered last week that almost half of the 80 doors she painted had been spray painted with black paint.
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“Seeing all the black doors was such a shock,” she said. “I felt like my heart had been ripped out. I was so shaken up by it.
“I’ve seen the children running through and screaming and being excited. The thought of them walking through and seeing them black was just awful.”
Karen, 50, who lives near the woodland, has been painting the doors for several months, and started because of her love for all things magical.
She finds small flat bits on tree trunks, which she paints to look like tiny doors. Often starting early or late, she had been trying to keep herself anonymous, and often also leaves small notes or gifts to try and keep the magic alive.
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Using her Facebook page Fairy Door Art, she leaves clues so people can find new doors and helps them explore the wood.
They have become a hit with members of the community, especially with children and families.
“I’ve never seen so many people in the woods,” she said. “I used to be able to walk through and wouldn’t see anyone but now it’s full of families and older people as well. I see them taking photos of the doors and it’s brought so much life to the place.
“I’ve always loved anything magical. I always loved fairies and witches and magic. My mam used to always say to see if there were fairy doors. I would walk through the woods and I would knock and I would be waiting for ages, just waiting for them to come out.”
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After discovering the damage she was determined not to be beaten by the vandals and spent eight hours repainting the black with colourful doors again. A second member of the committee joined her, and soon the word got out and more than 30 people turned up last Sunday to make sure the doors were returned to their former glory in the space of just a few hours.
Karen, who has been teaching art for 27 years, was able to demonstrate to the novice artists how to create the details to bring them to life.
She added: “It’s incredible how much good has come out of it.
“When I started I was doing it anonymously. I didn’t want it to be about me, I just wanted to make something a bit magical for the kids. Now it belongs to the community because of what happened. I’m so proud of that.”
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