The Yellow Hat Tribe is the unmistakeable signature of the artist Irene Tyack, who celebrates ten years of success with a new exhibition, writes TRACY ATKINS

The yellow car sits abandoned in the field by the road with a sign which entices you to visit the sunshine state of Irene Tyack's Yellow Hat Tribe Gallery in the Cotswolds. In this her tenth year as a commercial artist, Irene will celebrate her milestone with an exhibition appropriately entitled Ten Years of Painting. Opening on Saturday, May 31, it will run for three weeks in the converted barn on her husband Vince's Brookfield Ostrich Farm at Church Westcote which serves as Irene's studio.

It was Vince who provided the inspiration with his tales of Africa and Irene's subsequent doodle on an envelope of a bill she couldn't pay that gave birth to the famous faceless tribe characters in her paintings which has enabled Irene to produce about 60 limited editions and originals fetching up to £20,000 each.

The activities of the largely asexual characters dressed in psychedelic smocks and socks may be varied but for Irene they all share the same theme. The yellow hats they all wear are symbolic of the sunshine we all have within us and the unity they share is symbolic of the harmony she looks for in her everyday life.

For those lucky enough to get an invitation to the official opening there are Irene's homemade Welsh cakes and the chance to scoop up a small original Tyack for as little as £300. The numbers may have gone up over a decade but Irene remains as down to earth as ever with her comment "there'll be no high-falutin' nibbles here".

At the centre of the exhibition is the wacky Pork and Ride.

"It was inspired by a member of the Cotswold set who recently visited the gallery who told me she was she was orf to Oxford to pork and ride," said Irene in typical good humour, embellishing her born-and-bred Hay-on-Wye accent with BBC vowels. The Gloucester Old Spot takes the starring role in this riot of colour, with members of the Yellow Hat Tribe ladening their pigs with all manner of wares.

A number of pigs and market traders will form a limited number of sought-after cameo pieces - a snippet at £295 to £395 with the larger originals now being sold at £3,590-£5,000.

Inspiration for the rest of the collection has come from gypsy caravans, carousels and windmills in what Irene describes as a return to her romantic roots and carefree life as a child.

Even at the age of five she was fascinated by the smell of sharpened pencils and the way flowers grew, sketching her observations on rolls of Anaglypta wallpaper her uncle used to bring home hidden down his trouser legs from the factory he worked at.

While it was the African desert that inspired her early work, covering the canvas with swathes of yellow ochre, it's the fields where Irene now feels most at home that fires her imagination. Lavender Harvest is an example of her latest work but also look out for the contemporary Tea in the Topiary Garden which features manicured bushes trimmed into hats.

A recent aristocratic former employee bought 20 of Irene's Yellow Hat Tribe tea towels to distribute to members of her staff for Christmas presents.

Perhaps as a consequence of her newfound fame, the first five paintings Irene sold - which happened to be to Vince's bank manager - have sadly been stolen. Irene is hopeful they may find their way back home one day, especially the very first appearance of the Yellow Hat Tribe who are seen in the desert having a bath. To anyone who can bring news of the paintings that leads to their return she is prepared to paint a smaller copy by way of reward.

It's not difficult to understand the universal appeal of her paintings. They exude an irresistible, mood-lifting approach to life. They defy definition by race, culture, status or place and appeal to buyers worldwide.

"I sailed through the menopause without a backward glance," says Irene but the lightness of her pictures and her ethos to enjoy life to the full hides her tough country upbringing. When times were hard, this mother of six worked as a potato and fruit picker, cleaner, nanny and, finally, barmaid where she met Vince who wooed her with the immortal line "If I'd have had a whisky, I'd have had the landlady. The Mackesons got me the barmaid."

With husband number three she has found true contentment, describing her wedding day with numerous grandchildren in tow as one of the happiest days of her life.

There will be a second exhibition in the autumn and Irene says there are plenty more ideas in her head. There are plans for books - for adults and children - and her painting courses are also becoming increasingly popular. She will teach you to paint flowers but not, of coure, the Yellow Hat Tribe that have become her extended family. As the punter who offered her £75,000 in cash on the table to buy the copyright was told - there are some things money just can't buy.

Ten Years of Painting opens on May 31 for three weeks. The Yellow Hat Tribe Gallery is at Brookfield Ostrich Farm, Church Westcote, on the A424 Burford to Stow road. Call 01993 832042.