Gavin Fitzsimons was born and brought up in a small fishing village near to Bangor, in County Down, Northern Ireland.
The house of his childhood was a stone’s throw from the beach and was surrounded by open fields and forests. From his earliest childhood, he painted and sketched the boats in the harbour, the local fishermen and the beach. Inspired particularly by his father, Franfit, who was a professional artist, Gavin Fitzsimons loved art at school but was persuaded by tutors and staff to pursue scientific qualifications instead. He has a BSc (Hons) in Biochemistry and an MSc (Science) from Queen’s University, but is now a professional artist.
Gavin Fitzsimons prefers to mix his own paint where possible, using only the finest oils and pigments, and focuses particularly on the use of texture, often by using thick paint which occasionally incorporates sand and which is applied with a palette knife. Although he concentrates particularly on his light and airy landscape paintings, he believes in the need for an artist to be versatile and thus also paints other subjects, including still lifes and portraits.
He is a regular contributor to the Royal Ulster Academy and to the Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin, and his work has been exhibited at galleries in Belfast and around Ireland. Away from the easel, his hobbies include playing the piano, learning new languages and marshal arts.
