Artist: John Hutchinson

For three generations my forbearers were artists. Painting is in my blood.

Having graduated from the Robson School of Fine Art in 1975, I plunged into the marine art waters. My subjects were 19th century sailing vessels and period maritime views. In 1978 I was one of the founding members of ASMA (the American Society of Marine Artists).

In the aftermath of my 10th annual exhibit of Marine Art show (1985), my wife remarked, “There are a lot of people who would like to own a piece of your art, but they don't want a ship.” I took her advice to heart and began to broaden my subject matter horizon. Since then my subjects, to name a few, have included portraits of animals and portraits of my children, wildlife scenes, custom-ordered liquor bottle labels, wooden-bodied beach wagons, duck decoy portraits, fishing scenes, and illustrations for my books for children.

In 2016 I did my first painting on an Art in the Park shark. Last year my whale sold for the highest figure in the history of the event.