• Undersail
  The spirit of sail and yacht racing
• Towards Harbour
  Moored and at rest
• Marine Linocuts
  Images of sail printed by linocut
• Surface Visions
  Mining landscapes past and present
• Below Grass
  Paintings of underground in Cornwall
• Below & Above Linocuts
  The mining landscape as depicted
  by linocuts

Marine Artist and PrintmakerJohn Scott Martin

John was born in Nottinghamshire, studying painting and graphic design at Nottingham College of Art in the 1960’s.

He now lives in rural Worcestershire, just about as far from the sea as you can get. This doesn’t stop him from making frequent trips to the sea. In his paintings he likes his ships and boats to move and this effects how he gathers his reference material. His primary source being an extensive library of his own photographic images. This is added to whenever possible, often with no time for a sketch, but always with time for the camera to record.

He has continued to be inspired over the last twenty years by sail, ships and the sea. The breadth of his maritime imagery and experience is continually expanding, always believing that his next marine painting might be his best. In 2020 he was elected President of the Royal Society of Marine Artists.

During his time at art college he developed an interest in mining imagery, living within easy sketching distance of the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire coalfields. This was extended by visits to the tin mining landscapes of Cornwall. In the early 1960’s mining was still a viable industry. Now, however it is consigned to the category of heritage, history and drama.

Since his time as a student, this interest has been sustained. Inspiration for this subject can be seen in the "Below Grass" page. Also in a new series of linocuts under the title of "Below & Above"