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A self-taught artist, Keith has specialised in the study of fish as an art
form since 1992. After a one-year foundation course at Maidstone Art
College, he left in 1984 to work as an apprentice technician at a Fine Art
Silkscreen and Etching print studio. Two years later he qualified as a
Master Fine Art Screen-printer, then became the Studio Manager, where he
worked with an assembly of internationally renowned artists.
On leaving to establish his own
name as a professional artist, initially Keith's images were all drawn
from natures natural beauty in colour and movement, including butterflies,
feathers and cascading fruits. He soon decided to build a reputation by
specialising in one subject and became drawn to Koi by their power, grace
and majestic colour variations. They have proved to be the ideal subject
as Keith's paintings are vibrant and colourful, with the realism of the
Koi being enhanced beautifully by either realistic or abstract
backgrounds.
Having exhibited at many shows
both internationally and in England, offering a range of products from
gift cards to large original paintings and commissions, Keith's reputation
has grown, including articles in Japanese, American, German and British
publications. A highlight of his career came in 1998, when he was
commissioned to visit some of Japan's top Koi breeders in Niigata, which
allowed him to see first hand some of the most beautiful Koi in the world,
motivating some of the paintings on view.
In 1999,
Keith became a Fine Art Trade Guild member and regularly attends many of
the main Art Trade
shows. This new market place coincided with Keith's willingness to
diversify with his imagery without contrasting the Koi paintings.
Inspired
by his scuba diving
experiences and the need for a
new subject, led to the Tropical Marine fish editions, which were
launched at New York’s DecorExpo and The Spring Fair, Birmingham in 2002
with great success.
Also in 2002,
Keith was privileged to be dive buddy to the filmmaker Nik Read of New
Vision Productions for the making of “Dive the Reef” and ”So you want to
Scuba?”.
Whether diving
off the coasts of England, Egypt, Malta or Cuba, the changing landscapes
and shapes of the Ocean have proved an inspiration.
For further information, Keith often visits Aquarium centres, so in
January 2004, he was delighted to be invited to work as “Artist in
Residence” at The Deep, Hull’s £45.5 million Millennium Commission lottery
project.
“Working at The Deep was a fantastic experience for me. With my easels
positioned by the main tank, an abundance of sea life including Sharks,
Rays, Snappers and Wrasse swam by me…excellent, the perfect setting”.
His imagery combines the anatomically correct painted fish with design, to
create a contemporary, dynamic and eye-catching look. Every painting is
carefully researched and executed, often taking months to complete, as
each scale is hand-embossed, then painted 7 or 8 times to create a
3-Dimensional effect. In addition to his background in silkcreen
printing, Keith also enjoys the challenges of etching and has produced a
series of Aquatints including “Face to Face”, selected for the 1998
National Print Exhibition, The Mall, London.
Keith's main influences
include; "The Ocean", the painting techniques of contemporary British
Artist, Terrence Warren,
the Japanese woodblock prints of Utagawa Hiroshige, Katsushika Hokusia and
Utagawa Kuniyoshi. The draughtsmanship of Hérge (George Remi) creator of
Tin Tin, the vibrant, colour and passion of Van Gogh's paintings and the
detailed precision of the two 20th Century American artists,
Norman Rockwell and Bev Doolittle.
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