Caterham resident Tom Bushnell showed artistic promise from an early age, winning an art prize at junior school age eight, for his sculpture of the boxer Brian London.
“I went on to win the art prize for the next eight years!” says Tom. “And when I was fourteen or fifteen, in senior school, my art teacher influenced me to look at art more closely, and got me some commissions. I painted the headmaster’s portrait, as well as the mayor and the chief education officer.”
Tom got his first taste of fame as an artist after the school prize giving that year when, not only were his three portraits – and his three subjects – in the hall, but also the local press. There was ‘a bit of noise’, Tom says, when the paper came out.
From there, Tom, with the help of his art teacher, secured interviews with both the Royal College of Art and the Slade School of Fine Art. Unfortunately, because he was only 16 at the time, he was too young to be accepted, but it was a testament to his talent that they agreed to see him in the first place.
After completing his A Levels, Tom got a place at the Central School of Art and Design, where he started to expand his interest in the art world, as well as becoming interested in abstract painting. He then went on to complete a BA Honours degree in Fine Art & Design at Ravensbourne College of Art and Design, now Ravensbourne University London.
“In my first year, one of my big paintings that I’d done got accepted at the Young Contemporaries exhibition at the Mall Galleries, the only student from my college to do so.”
Tom trained as an accountant after college as well as getting married and becoming a father, but continued to paint, taking on commissions for portraits, copies of Old Masters, still life pictures and landscapes. In his later years, his focus is back on his first love of vivid colour abstracts, with themes of love, happiness, joy, hope and positivity.
“Since I retired,” he says, “I’ve been continually painting, and getting some reasonable success. I’m just doing what I want to do now.”
Tom says that his abstract art can be inspired by something he’s noticed in the world around him.
“Sometimes I begin the canvas with nothing, but often it’s a combination of colours I’ve seen somewhere that will get me started. And then it’s almost like a dialogue with the artwork as I progress with it, and I end up with something that I hadn’t even considered at the beginning.”
Over the years Tom’s work has been displayed at many galleries and art fairs, including the Royal Academy Summer Show, and he has sold over 1,000 paintings during his career. This year has seen a surge of interest in his art, and he is looking forward to seeing where some upcoming displays and promotions will take him.
Two of his paintings, titled Be Happy and It’s Only Rock and Roll But I Like It, have also recently been accepted for exhibition at The Business Centre, in Sackville Street, Mayfair.
When he’s not painting, Tom is also a regular visitor to The Westway Centre in Caterham, where he spends time chatting to others.
“I really enjoy it there. I’ve met some great people there with wonderful stories, so I immerse myself in it a couple of times a week. I often have a meal there and join in some of the dancing activities too.”
You can see more of Tom’s work, past and current exhibitions, as well as contact details for commissions at tombushnell.co.uk.
