Derek was born in Warrington, north-west England. He began his career early with his father. While listening to stories that evoke the meaning of colors: scarlet lacquer, brown Van Dyck indigo …

Derek was born in Warrington, north-west England. He began his career early with his father. While listening to stories that evoke the meaning of colors: scarlet lacquer, brown Van Dyck indigo …

He had to arrange in order, the tubes of oil paint and prepare the mixtures of colors with enthusiasm, for his father who was a well-known painter.

Derek clearly shared his passion for painting with his father. Following schooling until he was a teenager at the Warrington School of Fine Arts, he studied painting and drawing, and, in less than two years, went to the College of Fine Arts in Manchester to learn graphic design.

Graduated in the 60’s, his first job was to design and illustrate for an advertising agency, after a career of about thirty years.

Derek became creative director at Barkers advertising agency in central London His designs became synonymous with brands such as Rolls Royce. General Motors, Decca Radar, Stella Artois, Bridgestone Tires, Philips … illustrating advertisements for magazines and paperbacks.

He became a freelance artist in the 90’s and spent more time navigating and painting watercolors. Subsequently, sailing in the Mediterranean. It is understandable that, the combination of his passion for art, for boats and the sea, resulted in an aesthetic and technically high-level production of excellent “marine paintings”.

Till his dead in 2019, he divided his time between navigation painting and restoration of an old classic ‘rigging of 12 meters.