Paul Kenton

Born in Derby in 1968 and raised from the age of eight in North Devon, Paul Kenton's artistic development was profoundly shaped by the region’s coastal beauty. A precocious talent, he declared his intention to become an artist while still at school, a vision later affirmed by winning a national colouring competition at age twelve. It was during this formative period that Kenton also developed a lifelong passion for the sea and surfing, motifs that would later inform both his creative energy and subject matter.

Working from his studio in North Devon, Kenton embraces the freedom of experimentation, avoiding strict adherence to any one medium. His focus is less on precise representation and more on atmosphere and emotional resonance, guided always by an obsession with light, whether refracted through glass and steel or shimmering across ocean surfaces.

In 2012, Kenton was commissioned to produce three large-scale paintings for the London Olympic Games, and his participation in the interactive public art display The Big Egg Hunt further cemented his status as one of Britain’s most celebrated contemporary painters. Kenton’s art is collected globally and has been exhibited at over thirty leading UK galleries, with the artist also engaging a new generation of admirers through his popular social media presence.