The wife of the Scottish artist David Mach was cremated yesterday in a coffin especially created for her by her widowed husband.

Lesley Mach, who died in December at the age of 57 after a long illness, was cremated in a coffin decorated in Mach's distinctive collage style.

She had worked closely with Mr Mach for many years.

Lesley Mach was described as being "crucial" to the artist's practice, having worked full time with him since 1981.

They met as teenagers at Buckhaven High School in Fife.

They married in 1979, after she graduated from Edinburgh University with a degree in English Literature and he studied art at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design.

The pair moved to London in 1979, and eventually settled in Forest Hill, in south-east London.

Mach had won a place at the prestigious Royal College of Art and "Les" took assorted jobs to support them.

When Mach's career took off in 1981 with his controversial Submarine piece at the Hayward Gallery, Les became a full-time partner: "the lynchpin of projects huge and small."

Projects David and Lesley worked on together included the Paper Parthenon at Tramway for Glasgow City of Culture 1990 as well as the largest single sculpture to be built in the UK, Train, in Darlington and representing Scotland in the Venice Biennale in 1990.

Mach said yesterday: "She was a class act.

"Extremely smart, gracious with great style.

"There's no doubt she eased my way into the art world.

"She kind of super-charged me.

"I loved being the monkey to her organ-grinder."

Mach recently spoke of his wife's five year battle with cancer.

The Scottish sculptor's wife had 18 operations.

He recently said: "She is an amazing woman. I've seen her cry only once, and only for a few seconds. I find myself loving being with her."