John Dyer (born 1968) is one of Britain’s leading and best-known contemporary painters.
“Imagine if all the colour, if all the shapes, if all the emotion, if all the fun, if all the joy and if all the love you feel could be captured for a moment to remember for all time. This is the power of a painting. This is the power of a painting that captures what a place feels like.” –John Dyer
John Dyer is one of the UK’s most exciting and postmodern plein-air painters. His work is collected internationally, and his paintings have been the subject of many popular television programmes and a wide range of merchandise.
John’s environmental work, studying the ethnobotanical relationships between plants and the Eden Project, has firmly placed him at the forefront of contemporary art. He is one of the UK’s best-known international environmental artists, having worked with leading scientific organisations worldwide.
“There is an innocence and freshness to John Dyer’s art that follows a tradition in Cornwall that includes the paintings of Cornwall by Alfred Wallis, Christopher Wood, Fred Yates and Bryan Pearce. Rather than trying to record what he sees, John sets out to capture the essence of his subject. The essence of seagulls, cats, dogs, bobbing boats, or exploding fireworks communicates far more strongly through John’s brushstrokes than they would if drawn more traditionally. It is this ability to capture the essence of what is important that seems to appeal to those who have shown great vision and originality in their own careers, such as Tim Smit, Alan Titchmarsh or Kim Wilde.”
Read the full text from the director of Falmouth Art Gallery.
Quotes about artist John Dyer:
“John’s work is pure painted joy. His pictures make you want to touch, squeeze and push your nose into flowers and breathe deeply. It’s no surprise that his paintings are popular worldwide. He touches a very human need for light, pattern and colour. We sense in John’s paintings the sheer human thrill of being alive.”
Sue Hill – Art Director, Eden Project
“One of the UK’s most exciting artists. It is rare to meet someone who has the same appreciation of atmosphere, colour, texture and the magic that can be created in a garden, and in John we have found someone who understands exactly what we were trying to do. Looking at your own garden through someone else’s eyes is always interesting, but when the eyes belong to John Dyer, then you hope that he will see something that allows him to use those vibrant colours he has on his palette.”
Alan Titchmarsh MBE
“The BIG Art & Storytelling Tall Ships Project is charismatic. John Dyer’s new Tall Ships painting, combined with professional storytelling, creates an irresistible hub for creativity to flourish.”
Philip Mould OBE
“Your fantastic paintings not only brought the apartment to life, but also put the energy of the Riviera indoors!”
Toyah Willcox – Rock Star
“John Dyer is one of Britain’s leading and best-known contemporary painters. Born in 1968, his work embraces colour and the ‘Song of Life’.”
The National Trust
“A fabulous collection which perfectly epitomises Eden.”
Tim Smit – Founder of the Eden Project
“I have always had immense respect for anyone who chooses to take the time to interpret our world for us through painting, and feel especially privileged to have hosted such an inspired artist in our back garden!”
Kim Wilde – Rock Star
“Cornish artist John Dyer has built up an enviable reputation with a host of successful exhibitions behind him and numerous poster and print publications promoting his work worldwide. ‘Cornish Safari’ consolidates a reputation that is founded on his love of painting the people and places of Cornwall.”
Inside Cornwall Magazine
“Walk into a room full of John Dyer’s creations and you can’t help but be bowled over by their sunny optimism, their colourful exuberance. They tell stories of seaside days and adventures into the natural world, exploring our surroundings with a genuine joie de vivre. His distinct style is internationally renowned, and he has travelled widely, depicting the relationship between people and their environment in places as diverse as Australia, the Philippines, Costa Rica and Japan.”
Lucy Cornes – Journalist
“John’s pictures are all about diversity and bringing out what might pass unseen.”
Charlotte Lusty – Bioversity International
John Dyer has been the artist in residence for many global organisations:
Darwin 200, The Eden Project, National Trust’s St Michael’s Mount, Giardini Hanbury, SBM Monaco, Falmouth – Royal Greenwich Tall Ships Regatta, Cutty Sark Tall Ships Regatta, Bioversity International, International Rice Research Institute, CGIAR, Gyllyngdune Gardens, Alan Titchmarsh, Kim Wilde, Tresco Estate, Banrock Station Wine Australia, BBC Gardeners’ World Live, Live 8 Concert, Girlguides Centenary, CIP Peru, Orangutan Foundation Borneo.
Find out more about John Dyer's Residencies.
John Dyer History
John Dyer studied Design in London, gaining the skills to present his paintings with a professional and refined approach.
His artwork reflects his positive outlook on life, consistently conveying joy, energy, and optimism.
At the age of 11, John’s talent was recognised when his work was featured in a magazine article, marking the beginning of his artistic career. He was a published artist by the age of 17 with work in Athena.
A life-changing bursary from Thames Television took him to the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil as a photographer. The vibrant colours and diverse imagery influenced his bold, expressive style and inspired him to paint.
Coming from an artistic family, John was heavily influenced by his father, Ted Dyer, a well-established painter, which helped shape his creative vision.
John Dyer is neurodiverse with Level 1 ASD (High-functioning autism or Asperger’s Syndrome), synesthesia, and ADHD, which undoubtedly contribute to the vibrant and intricate nature of his artistic expression. These characteristics enhance his ability to perceive and translate the world into extraordinary colours and patterns, making his work stand out with its unique vision and detail. His approach gives his art an authentic, enriched perspective, capturing the viewer’s imagination.
Key Facts
• Born in 1968 in Somerset. The son of two painters, Ted Dyer and Vivien Dyer.
• Ted Dyer moved the family to Cornwall in 1972, and John spent his childhood in the Cornish landscape with sketchbooks and drawing materials.
• John studied for a BA (Hons) in Design in London and, during that time, travelled in the Amazon Rainforest of Brazil, supported by Thames Television.
• John graduated with an honours degree, returned to Cornwall to paint, and was asked by Falmouth Art School to lecture for them. John lectured part-time for nine years.
• In 2000, John was made Painter in Residence for the Eden Project, a position he still holds today. His work is recognised internationally by many globally essential organisations, and he has spent time painting in Costa Rica, Italy, France, and the Philippines for the project.
• John is one of the UK’s most widely published artists.
• John’s work is held in the permanent public art collections of The Eden Project, The National Trust, The Tresco Estate, Save the Children UK, Falmouth Art Gallery, Gyllyngdune Gardens, and many significant private collections across the world.
Fun, lively, and appealing to an audience worldwide, John Dyer captures the lighter side of life in his colourful paintings. Recognised for his cheerful reflections on Cornwall, John has also used humour and laughter in his work to highlight many serious causes over the past five years. Only recently, he returned from the Borneo rainforest, where he had been involved in a project to raise awareness about climate change.
John Dyer was born in Taunton in 1968 into an artistic family who inspired him to paint from an early age. He completed a Foundation Art Course at Falmouth College of Art in 1987 and went on to gain a BA (Hons) Degree in Graphic Design at Middlesex University in London.
“I have lived in Cornwall for most of my life and have been lucky enough to have grown up surrounded by art, artists and painting. My father, Ted Dyer, is a painter, and it is his influence and guidance that have inspired me to explore my own paintings and find my own artistic voice. I have painted from a very young age and studied formally at Falmouth Art School and Middlesex University in a range of visual arts before focusing on painting. I returned to Cornwall in 1992 and have never looked back. I have been lucky in that people have always enjoyed my paintings. I focus on the positive elements of life, the things that inspire me, and the song of life. My work is a natural response to the world around me, contemporary, and as personal to me as my handwriting. I paint the space where what I see and what I feel merge. I want to bring part of myself to the viewer through my art, and I like the viewer to get an equal amount from my paintings. If this happens, then I will succeed in my aim. I hope the sum of the two adds up to far more than I could ever know.”
John Dyer
