Stephen Johnson
I was born in East Ham, London in March of 1951. Brought up in the East End I lived in the area for 25 years and tried my hand at various occupations including working in the then thriving Royal London dock yards as a Tally Clerk.
After living in the city all of my life, as I grew older I discovered there was a want and need for the clean air and open space of the countryside. When the opportunity arose in 1975 to move my wife Marian and new baby boy Russell to what was effectively the "countryside" at the time, I jumped at the chance. Witham in Essex became our home and has remained so for the past 30 + years. Marian and I went on to have another son, Craig, in 1977.
My interest in art did not materialise for many years. It was on a summers day in Dedham on the Essex and Suffolk border that my love for watercolour was born. I had decided whilst sitting by the river that I needed to slow down, relax and take in some of the beauty that was right on my own doorstep.
Watercolour painting became a hobby and a way to appreciate the beauty and tranquilty of some of the most beautiful places in the UK. I was hooked and spent several years travelling the country in search of inspiration for more and more paintings. I took a particularly keen interest in the harbours and villages of Devon and Cornwall where we spent much time on holiday. At one point I was determined to discover and paint every quaint little harbour in Britain and found many of these in the West Country and Wales.
So much travelling however is not easy to maintain and over time I began to look at the area I lived in for inspiration. I found that Essex had so much to offer in this respect and as you will see upon viewing the site, I have produced many paintings of scenes in the county.
I continue to paint whenever and wherever the mood takes me and hope one day to complete my goal of capturing all the most beautiful harbours in the country!
