Simon B. Hodges was born in Mitcham in Surrey but now lives and works in Larkhall, Bath.

Highlights from a childhood interest in drawing and painting include being pictured on the front-page of some local newspapers; sketching during various publicised events and having work exhibited in a national drawing competition at The Royal Academy in London.

Whilst qualifying as an architect at The Welsh School of Architecture at UWIST in Cardiff, he won The Welsh Measured Drawing Competition and represented The University in a national drawing and design exhibition.

As an architect, he practised in London, Yeovil, Oxford, Frome and Bath and during this time had work accepted in the architectural section of The Royal West of England Academy in Bristol.

In 1999, he made the decision to cease all architectural practice and to concentrate on becoming a professional artist.

Completely self-taught since school, he worked initially in charcoal, pastel, graphite and watercolour but not wanting to be restricted, now also works in gouache, acrylic and oil. Whilst he likes to sketch and paint subjects in the open air, most finished work is done in his studio. Being mainly a landscape and townscape artist his greatest artistic influences are J.M.W. Turner and his contemporaries of the 18th and 19th centuries.

He is a member of The SAA (www.saa.co.uk.) and to date his work has been exhibited at The Sadler Gallery in Wells; First Sight Gallery in Bath; The Bath Society of Artists Annual Exhibition; The Theatre Royal, Bath and various other small exhibitions. He also regularly holds his own solo exhibitions and these have included-

• “A Moment in Time” 1999
• “Bath and Beyond” 2003
• “In a Different Light” 2004
• “Drawing on Bath” 2005
• “Changing Moods” 2005
• “A Further Step” 2006
• “All about Bath” 2007
• “Drawn to Water” 2007

Simon is one of the resident artists at The Le Corre Gallery, Tithe Barn Workshop, Barton Farm, Pound Lane, Bradford on Avon, BA15 1LF where work is continually on display and from where work has so far gone to Europe, America and Australia.

Images have been reproduced as limited edition prints and cards for, amongst others, The Theatre Royal, No.1 The Royal Crescent in Bath, The Bradford on Avon Tourist Information Office and The Royal Pharmaceutical Society in London.