Amphion off Ushant - original watercolour

Highly atmospheric and accurate watercolour paintings depicting square-riggers of the C18th and early C19th British Navy, including HMS Beagle, HMS Amphion, HMS Victory, HMS Resolution and HMS Foudroyant..

John Christian was born in 1954 and grew up in a pub on the harbour of a busy fishing port so boats and harbour artists were part every day life, he went to the local Community College and was selected by the art teacher as a gifted student and attended Art College on Saturdays, with 6 other students from the wider catchment area, for advanced tuition, it was a five-mile bus journey each way.

After leaving school it was a natural step to go to sea on the local trawlers, after 5 years he took his merchant trawler skippers ticket at Warsash Naval College in Southampton and had many further fruitful years deep-sea fishing as 1st mate. Eventually the call of the land drew him and he came ashore, landscaping for a while before re-training as an adult trainer in basic and key skills. He painted the sea to fill the void, to feel the nature within, eventually painting full time both as a harbour artist in the season and in his studio.

John has been painting for many years now and has developed a love for watercolour as his favoured medium; he never uses white and allows the light to come from the paper. He sees painting as a learning process and works from sketches of boats and ships, drawing on memories of being a fisherman at sea and researching from historical records, he has many books and there is much information available online these days with public libraries and records.

“I try to be as accurate and true as possible, always remembering to enjoy the creative processes involved in producing a piece of artwork. I hope my pictures enrich the lives of those who live with them”.

Foudroyant off Torbay - original watercolour