DEREK G M GARDNER, RSMA 13th February 1914 – 11th February 2007
For more information about the Artist,
including a photo, more detailed biography and literature, please
see our See also Prints by Derek Gardner |
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Derek Gardner was the leading British maritime painter of the 20th century. He was a self-taught artist who became a master of his art by virtue of his ability to convey the colour, the luminosity and all the drama of the wind and sea. More than this, he was unique in his ability portray ships with great accuracy and an attention to detail that was the result of many hours of painstaking research and preparation. He came to international notice from 1968 when he began exhibiting with us at the Polak Gallery in London. A series of seven highly successful one-man exhibitions took place at the Polak Gallery - 1972, 1975, 1978, 1982, 1987, 1990 and 1995 - each exhibition accompanied by a splendid catalogue where Derek documented all the works on display. Our location in central London meant that the Gardner paintings were finding a large enthusiastic audience from all parts of the world, most notably in the USA. Derek loved to portray the great square rigged sailing ships of the 19th Century and 20th century. Often he gave these paintings titles like “The Record Breaker” and “Fast Sailing” reflecting his view of these fast and sleek vessels, which Derek could portray so well by capturing all the elements of wind, sea and speed. In addition to these paintings of the great clipper ships racing over the seas, Derek’s greatest passion was in portraying the naval ships of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Derek explained that this interest started at a relatively young age when he read the “Life of Nelson”. He loved painting the ships and battles from the Nelson era; so much so that at the age of 91 his final exhibition was devoted almost entirely to Nelson’s ships. Today Derek Gardner is widely recognised as the leading marine artist of his era and his work continues to fascinate collectors on both sides of the Atlantic. His work is in a number of public collections including the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich, the Royal Naval College at Dartmouth, the museums in Bermuda and Tenerife and in many private collections worldwide. |
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Dreadnought was designed and built by Currier & Townshend at Newbury Port, Massachusetts. She was ordered by her owners for Captain Samuels. Samuels had already made a great reputation for himself on the Atlantic crossing and under his command she became known for her speed. Her maiden passage was in November 1853. This was in a period when the emigrant trade to the USA was booming. She left New York for Liverpool with a cargo of wheat, flour and cotton, making the round trip in 58 days and showing her owners a profit of $40,000. She was built to bear driving to the limit in the heavy weather of the North Atlantic and such was the way she was driven by Samuels that the ship was nicknamed “ the Wild Boat of the Atlantic”. The Dreadnought was just 10 years in the Atlantic passage service. With a red cross at her topsail she was the last surviving and only ship representing the St Georges Cross Line of New York. |
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In 1934 he joined the Clyde Division of the Royal
Naval Volunteer Reserve and later served throughout the war in the
Royal Navy. In 1942 he was mentioned in dispatches for distinguished
service when the destroyer "Broke" was sunk in the Mediterranean.
He retired from the Navy in 1947 with the rank of Commander and resumed
his career as a chartered civil engineer working for the Colonial
Service in Kenya.
Whilst in Kenya, he devoted much of his spare time to painting in both oil and watercolour, working on both landscape and maritime works, some of which were submitted for exhibition. In 1963 with the onset of his deafness he was forced to retire from the Colonial Service. Returning to England and an uncertain future, he began a new career as an artist, concentrating on the paintings of maritime history for which he has become so well known today. |
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| He was elected to membership of the Royal Society of Marine Artists
in 1966 and, in both 1982 and 1984 he was a finalist in the Hunting Group
Art Prizes organised by the Federation of British Artists. In 1988 the
Royal Society of Marine Artists accorded him the unusual honour of electing
him to be an Honorary Vice President for life.
He came to international notice from 1968 when he began exhibiting at the Polak Gallery in London. Here he met my father Bob Jack. The two men became great friends and the association continued under the Polak banner until 1999. A series of seven highly successful one-man exhibitions took place at the Polak Gallery in 1972, 1975, 1978, 1982, 1987, 1990 and 1995, each accompanied by a splendid catalogue where Derek documented all the works on display. Our location in central London meant that the Gardner paintings were finding a large enthusiastic audience from all parts of the world, most notably in the USA. |
| Although Derek was dedicated to his art his output was not particularly prolific; his method of working meant that each painting was the product of many weeks of research, design and painting, meaning that there were long gaps between the exhibitions and hungry collectors eagerly awaiting the new output at each event. His last London exhibition in 2005 – after a gap of 10 years - was on the theme of Nelson’s ships, a major exhibition celebrating the Bicentenary of the Battle of Trafalgar. |
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| Today Derek Gardner is considered to be one of the leading maritime artists of his era. His success lies in his ability to portray ships with great accuracy while conveying the colour, the luminosity and all the drama of the wind and sea. His work is in a number of public collections including the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich, the Royal Naval College at Dartmouth, the museums in Bermuda and Tenerife and in many private collections worldwide. |
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| See also Prints by Derek Gardner For more information about the Artist,
including a more detailed biography and literature, please see
our |