John Hollyer

John Hollyer has lived and worked in Kent for most of his life, making his first drawing, a Guillemot, in 1947 and his first bird paintings in 1962.

His preference is for terrestrial birds: cranes, bustards, game birds, sandgrouse, larks, wheatears and pipits with one or two notable exceptions. Paintings frequently show flocks and flying birds.

He sold several large oil paintings at The Mall Galleries, as a guest of SWLA in the 1970’s-80’s. Five of his drawings in black and white became ‘British Birds’ covers and he won the PJC Award for a drawing of Snow Buntings in 1987. Since then the birds have become smaller and the landscapes more significant.

His only claim to fame is that in  1953 he introduced James Dixon  to drawing and painting. James Dixon went on to become a successful Primitive Artist on Tory Island. There is now a gallery on the island in his memory.