I was born in Chesterfield, Derbyshire in 1959 and have been told I could always draw. Was young I was lent a beautifully illustrated edition of ‘The Jungle Book”, for months I religiously copied the exquisite pen and ink drawings of animals which adorned its pages.  I made a portfolio of card and wrote NICK POTTER ARTIST.  KEEP OUT.  on the front.  It seems all I ever wanted to do was to be and Artist Unfortunately life doesn’t always give you what you want immediately.

I enjoyed a happy and comfortable childhood, my father was a steelworker, my mother was a teacher. During my secondary education at Netherthorpe Grammar School I engaged in a wide varieties of activities including sport, I was very good at games and art.  I was also the only pupil at school to take ‘A’ level art receiving one on one tuition from my art teacher, who I thought of as a friend rather than a Teacher.  I sold my first painting to the school Headmistress for £10, she wryly suggested I might invest some of it in a razor!.

I was encouraged to go to University rather than Art School, and so went to Leicester to study Archeology.  On leaving I reluctantly went into Teaching, this did not work out and I got a job as a publishing rep.  My wife and I then moved to a Village in in the heart of the Leicestershire countryside,  living in the country I became much more interested in Landscape painting.

In 1988 I moved back to Derbyshire about this time my father died suddenly,which made me aware of the fragility of existence, I  longed to do something more with my life.  My frustration affected my marriage and my wife and I amicably divorced.  I bought a small cottage turned the main bedroom into a studio and painted, I discovered the vibrancy of silk paints and used them like watercolours.  My new partner Natasha was very keen for me to use my artistic talents.  We bought a house together and Set up a company called ‘Altered Images’ selling my cards and paintings to Derbyshire Galleries.  My work proved very popular and gave me my first real break with a one man exhibition.  In 2003 together with Natasha the Charisma Gallery in Derbyshire was launched.

Wild landscapes are my inspiration, I paint in my garden studio, having decided a composition, I quickly but carefully sketch in the detail, I then decide on the mood colour which will unify the painting.  Generally I use acrylics, and I like to use texture in my work, this can take different forms inpasto paint, gesso applied with a knife, decorators filler or smooth internal plaster.  The paintings evolve and develop during the process, nothing is written in stone.