Born in 1957, Nigel grew up in the village of Kinver, Staffordshire.
From an early age he showed a keen interest in painting - his rural up-bringing resulting in his choice of wild
birds and landscape as subjects for his work.
After leaving school at eighteen, Nigel spent a year at Art College before deciding that teaching would be a suitable
career to follow. Nigel made the decision that no career could fulfil him other than one in art, so in 1977, at
the age of twenty one, he turned professional.
Although he saw himself first and foremost as a wildlife artist, Nigel nevertheless realised that, at least initially,
he would need to find a potentially more lucrative subject in which to specialise. With this in mind, in order
to stand any chance of establishing himself as an artist, animal portraits - specifically peoples pets - seemed
to afford him this opportunity. In those early years he would paint any animals requested of him but in time it
became apparent that it was dogs, above all other pets, that were the most requested.
In 1982, Nigel married. His new wife, Sue, brought with her a dog and cat. Never having lived with large pets before,
the experience came as a revelation. Nigel's appreciation, not only of dogs, but more importantly their relationship
with us, started to grow. As a result his attitude and approach to his work began to change, culminating in a painting
entitled "In Retirement". Its combination of pathos, character and narrative, ensured that it met with
considerable popular acclaim. For Nigel it represented a turning point in his career which ultimately led to his
abandoning any serious desire to paint wildlife. Instead he chose to concentrate on his canine subjects and developed
the distinctive style of narrative dog painting that has become the hallmark of his work today. As he says himself,
"I try to paint pictures, not simply of dogs, but about dogs.
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