British children's author drowns after being swept away at a Philippines waterfall

A British artist and children's author has died after being swept away at a waterfall in the Philippines.

Richard Kidd, 56, whose paintings have been exhibited all over the world, was overpowered by strong currents as he swam in Bataan's Dunsulan Falls.

Mr Kidd had gone to the tourist attraction west of the capital Manila with his girlfriend, 25-year-old Ailsa Lamble, and her father, also named Richard.

Mr Lamble told a Philippines newspaper: 'As soon as Richard got into the water, into what looked like a basin, he was sucked straight down and could no longer come up to the surface.'

Miss Lamble, a fine art graduate of Newcastle University, said: 'I was in the woods nearby and when I returned, I saw my father trying to pull Richard out of the water.

'My father and two men tried to resuscitate him for almost an hour.'

He was declared dead on arrival at the St Joseph Hospital in Balanga City.

Mr Kidd leaves two daughters, Rachel, 17, and Daisy, 15, who live with their mother Lindsay, Mr Kidd's ex-wife near Stratford-upon-Avon.

It is believed Mr Kidd, from Gateshead, had been in the Philippines for three weeks visiting his girlfriend's relatives.

He had studied fine art at Newcastle University and had lived in both London and New York before returning to his native Tyneside in recent years.

Mr Kidd was known for his abstract paintings of countryside scenes and was also a popular children's author.

Drowned: Mr Kidd was swimming alone when he was sucked down by the waterfall

His books included his self-illustrated debut Almost Famous Daisy! and The Last Leg.

His literary agent, Caroline Walsh said: 'He was a charismatic man. He was driven in terms of his art, always full of ideas and plans. He was very talented.'

Mr Kidd's father Richard Robson-Kidd, 88, and mother Vera, 84, were too upset to speak at their home in Gateshead.

But their other son Geoffrey paid tribute to his brother as a loving father who had been so excited about his two-month trip with long-term girlfriend Miss Lamble.

Of his daughters, Mr Kidd said: 'They were a very big part of his life. His girls were everything to him. He wrote about 10 children's books. They were quite a part of his life. He was a great children's person.'

Mr Kidd, a salmon farmer, described his brother as a physically fit man, whose hobbies were running and swimming.

'Richard was always a very adventurous person, what with climbing and outdoor activities. It stimulated his art work.'

Tragic: Mr Kidd, who wrote several children's books, leaves two daughters

Local police said Mr Kidd was in the country to paint a luxury ship in Bataan.

The Philippine archipelago in south east Asia is made up of more than 7,000 islands.

According to biographies of Mr Kidd that were posted on gallery websites, he exhibited all over the world, including at the MOMA (Museum of Modern Art) museums in San Francisco, Rio de Janeiro, and Zurich.

An artist’s statement posted on the Stour Gallery website read: ‘My paintings are about remote, mountainous landscapes because that’s where I feel most at home.

‘Georges Braque once said “Making a painting is like taking a journey”. This seems to me to be a fitting comparison. Sometimes you know where you’re going. The route is planned.

‘Other times you get lost, perhaps deliberately, and end up somewhere totally unexpected.’

Death spot: Bataan's Dunsulan Falls in Manila where the author died

Paul Roberts, manager of The Biscuit Factory, an art gallery in Newcastle where Mr Kidd's work is on display in the restaurant, said: 'We are really sorry to hear of him passing away.

'It's a terrible accident and he was a lovely man. He was very amiable. He had a passion for art and the North East.

'He travelled across the world but he came back to the North East a few years ago and set up a studio in Corbridge, Northumberland.'

Mr Kidd was one of The Biscuit Factory's founding artists when it opened about six years ago.