Andrew Hird

Born near London in 1966, Andrew Hird has an artistic talent encouraged and developed through school years by tutors Ron Smoothey OBE and Frank Brown, themselves products of the Slade, Camberwell and Goldsmiths colleges of art, and both painters of note.

Andrew's style has always been squarely figurative so when the prospect of moving from secondary to degree level art education beckoned, he decided not to follow the abstract and conceptual themes then in fashion and took up a career away from the world of art.

Despite spending the early part of his professional career in a non-creative industry, Andrew maintained his interest in painting. As time and finances allowed he started to rediscover drawing and painting skills from his schooldays, and revisited his interest in art history.

These small steps along the path to life as a full-time painter gathered momentum, and in 2015 Andrew started to paint more seriously with a view to exhibiting. The reaction to his work from respected observers was universally encouraging so he took the final step and turned fully professional shortly after. Since then he has won the Royal Institute of Oil Painters Paint Live competition in 2015, the Artist Magazine's Purchase prize at the Patchings Festival in 2016, plus the Great Art and People's Choice awards in 2017. He will have his first solo exhibition in central London in 2018.

Andrew paints in oils and much of his work is created from life. He works in the landscape to capture the energy and atmosphere around him. He is particularly inspired by line and light, and his paintings of cityscapes and the atmospheric effects of weather reflect this. He often develops observations from location studies into larger studio works.

Andrew now lives on the Isle of Wight and his eye has turned to the sea and it's maritime life. He hopes to develop this new subject and can regularly be seen sketching and painting in the island's boat yards and marinas.