Chris Kirby

“I paint the shapes and lines of wooden boats, not as simply vessels, but as art forms in their own right”  

Admitted into Kingston School of Art in the 1960s, Chris paints with a modernist and minimalist sensibility. His approach is essentially that of a still-life artist, concerned with the placement and juxtaposition of shapes and forms.

With an appreciation of the craftsmanship of traditional family boat-builders, whose skills were passed down through generations, Chris nearly always depicts these vessels beached at low tide, allowing their curves, lines and working patina to be revealed, thereby presenting these classic and historical boats as sculptural forms in their own right. Which Chris believes they are!