About John

Jon paints mainly in oils, watercolours and acrylics. His paintings are often inspired by the landscapes and architecture of south-west France. He seeks to explore a sense of space and belonging, with the viewer often encouraged to want to continue walking through the painting or to become part of it.

His work aims to explore how changes in light and time influence the subject and our reaction to it. The work is often described as calm or serene, evocative of the past or having dreamlike qualities. This may be because he finds it difficult to paint if other preoccupations or worries are intruding on his mind at the time.

Jon studied art at Sunderland Polytechnic (now the University of Sunderland) from 1982 to 1986. It was there that he discovered a passion for ceramics and still enjoys making ceramic objects. After graduating, he taught for a while before deciding to leave teaching and work as a graphic designer. After gaining an HNC in Graphic Design at Newcastle College, he worked on design contracts and in advertising agencies before setting up a graphic design business in his home town in England.

With painting becoming an increasingly important part of his life, he and his wife took the opportunity to move full-time to France in 2016, where he registered as a professional artist.

Today, he divides his time between painting and teaching art to small groups.

His paintings are in collections in France, the UK and around the world.