James Naughton’s paintings are inspired by the shifting light and cloud of the moors and valleys in Yorkshire and the North of England. The artist expresses the sense of wonder and surprise he feels in nature, and records the essence of his experience. There is a sense that elemental forces are at work, with huge clouds hanging over endless horizons, sunlight emerging through the darkness; breathtaking landscapes that bear the ravages of wind and rain, yet remain imposing, defiant, at times almost intimidating.
James Naughton was born in Bolton, Lancashire in 1971. In his youth he remembers long country walks with his father which were to inspire his passion for the moors and valleys which were to become the subject of so many of his paintings in later life.
His training at art college was very much based in print making and graphic art and it was only later that he discovered what was to become a passion for painting landscape as he established his reputation, not as a printmaker, but as a landscape painter of extraordinary vision and originality.
He was recently awarded Arts Council funding for a major museum exhibition based on his travels through Yellowstone in the USA.
