I was born and brought up in Cheshire in the Northwest of England. At college my standout subjects were Art and Mathematics, I achieve full marks in my final art exam for a large-scale painting of derelict buildings in my local area. After some deliberation I studied Mathematics at Birmingham University and continued to paint in my spare time. Shortly after University I moved to the Midlands and now live in North Worcestershire with my wife and our two young children, we enjoy being close to the countryside and exploring nature.

I am a member of several art societies in the Midlands, I love reading about art and various artists and take any opportunity to go and see art in galleries or otherwise. My work has been shown in a variety of exhibitions (including the RBSA gallery in Birmingham, Nuneaton Museum & Art Gallery and the Herbert in Coventry) over the past few years. My most recent work was commissioned by Birmingham Selfridges, this involved me painting six large canvas panels live in store with contributions from customers for their Father’s Day event. I have sold work as far afield as New York and I love the fact that my art brings joy to people’s lives as they hang it in their homes.

I predominantly work on large canvases and use a variety of mediums including Acrylic, Spray Paint, Inks, Oil Pastels, collage and I experiment with different textures by adding materials such as coffee grounds to my paints. Working bigger allows me to move more and become more immersed in my painting. I play with the balance between free-form and structure, rationality and creativity, light and dark, and hope and despair. My current series of work is inspired by journeys of self-discovery and human psychological progress and I play with the concepts of balance and discord.

Find out more about my art on my website: www.joeeccles.co.uk or follow me on Instagram @artist_joe_eccles.