John Hicks, a retired art school teacher from Penarth, has already held six solo shows across Wales, including one at Turner House Gallery in Penarth.
For his next exhibition, he plans to display between 60 and 100 paintings.
John’s next individual showcase in April 2027 will be an exhibition in Queen Street Gallery in Neath, a spacious venue established in 2018.
Two of his paintings will be displayed in the Cowbridge Open Art exhibition, the Old Hall, August 17-31.
David Hockney, Lucian Freud and Jenny Saville, among others, are some of the artists John takes inspiration from within his work.
John’s artistic style is characterised by figurative oil paintings which highlight mindfulness. His artwork primarily focuses on people and places, typically merging elements of surrealism and abstract expressionism.
Since retiring, John has dedicated much of his time to painting, yet his 25 years of experience as an art teacher at Newport High certainly continues to shape his work.
He explained: "I essentially taught art process and critical thinking; all these teaching techniques I apply to my own practice, which makes me work more efficiently and effectively."
Following this, John reflected that the practice of mindfulness is largely the foundation of his artwork.
He outlined that, "most of my images are based on mindfulness; essentially stopping to appreciate and really notice a moment, then recording it."
When asked about how he would like viewers to interpret his artwork, he said: "Like all human art, my art is about emotion; viewers will have an emotional reaction which is completely personal to them. Everyone’s reaction is completely valid; that’s what (human) art is all about."
Additionally, John added: "I hope seeing familiar places through an artist’s eyes encourages viewers to look at their surroundings a little differently, to stop and take it all in."
Like many artists, John uses photography as a major source of inspiration. Within his paintings, he blends photographic techniques, for instance controlling the depth of field, to focus the viewer on specific parts of a painting.
Furthermore, when reflecting on the creative process, John describes, "The paintings never turn out quite how you initially expect. That's the joy of painting; you’ve just got to go with it and hope for the best."
One painting which John is especially proud of is one he painted of Berlin Haubahnhof. (as pictured)
This painting was one of the first urban landscapes John completed using colour as part of the narrative. Indeed, he was also particularly satisfied with how it panned out given how complicated it was to draw considering the complicated angles.
John reflected that his artwork has evolved greatly in recent years and in the future he hopes to raise his standards even further in the years to come.
John regularly exhibits paintings in group (open call) exhibitions around Wales and England. As well, he offers talks, demonstrations and teaching sessions for adult art groups and schools.
His work can be viewed on Instagram @johnhicks149 and he can be contacted at johnhicks149@gmail.com.
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