A summer for heroes

The name Robert Taylor has been synonymous with aviation art for over a quarter of a century and he is widely regarded as the world’s premier painter of aviation subjects, and is certainly the most widely collected artist in the history of the genre.

Robert's aviation paintings are instantly recognisable. He somehow manages to convey all the technical detail of aviation in a traditional and painterly style, reminiscent of the Old Masters. With uncanny ability, he is able to recreate scenes from the past with a carefully rehearsed realism that few other artists ever manage to achieve. This is partly due to his prodigious research but also his attention to detail: Not for him are shiny new factory-fresh aircraft looking like museum specimens. His trade mark, flying machines that are battle-scarred, worse for wear, with dings down the fuselage, chips and dents along the leading edges of wings, oil stains trailing from engine cowlings, paintwork faded with dust and grime; his planes are real!

Robert's works have drawn crowds in the international arena since the early 1980s. He has exhibited throughout the US and Canada, Australia, Japan and in Europe. His one-man exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC is hailed as the most popular art exhibition ever held there. His paintings hang in many of the world's great aviation museums, adorn boardrooms, offices and homes, and his limited edition prints are avidly collected all around the world.

From an early age, young Richard Taylor had shown an exceptional ability to draw. Not surprising perhaps, having been brought up in a family where fine art drawing, painting, print publishing, gallery receptions and art exhibitions pervaded daily life, but in his case a very rare talent was obvious to all who saw his work.

A future somewhere in the world of art seemed undoubted, though exactly where didn’t become clear to Richard until he completed a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Graphic Design at Bath Spa University College. He excelled during his academic years, producing a remarkable body of creative illustrative work that was clearly leading him towards the world of fine art painting.

Under the watchful guidance of his father Robert, Richard’s skills were fast maturing to a standard where local galleries started exhibiting his paintings and drawings and he found himself immersed in commissions for friends, and soon, friends of friends, depicting images ranging from automobiles to wildlife. No matter what the subject area, like any determined young artist, Richard took it all in his stride. But deep down, his heart always lay with his passion for aircraft, and things mechanical – as his father says “it must be in the genes”.

Richard Taylor is a young talent not to be ignored. His abounding enthusiasm and the distinctive natural flair of this young professional artist is clearly demonstrated in his aviation and military works.

In working with The Military Gallery – the same international publishing house that has represented his illustrious father over 30 years – Richard Taylor is carving out an exciting career for himself: a career that the most discerning collectors of the genre will no doubt wish to hold a stake in from the very outset.

Anthony Saunders is one of the most talented Aviation and Marine artists in the industry and possesses a superb grasp of the speed and power required when portraying scenes of aerial combat. He will spend many hours researching every composition to ensure that it is historically and technically correct in every detail, and the results of his skill are obvious to see.

His ability in bringing to life breathtaking skyscapes and machines of aerial combat with the rich colours of oil paint means it is hardly surprising that his repertoire includes many other subjects, including historical scenes of the Crimea & Waterloo; he is equally at home with landscapes and portraits.

Gerald Coulson has been painting professionally for over 30 years. The Fine Art Guild has placed him among the top 10 best selling UK artists no less than 15 times in 12 years - 3 times at No. 1.

Coulson's first love was aircraft, studying and drawing them at every opportunity, from an early age. His apprenticeship as an aircraft engineer, then as an RAF Technician and later an engineer with British Airways, have allowed him an insight and intimate knowledge of the aircraft he paints. He combined this with his drawing ability to become a Technical Illustrator of service manuals for Civil and Military Aircraft. Gerald's ability to capture these aircraft on canvas led to a painting career, which he took up full time in 1969; his work has been highly sought after ever since. Whatever the subject or type of aircraft, his ability to capture the realism and mood of the scene is unsurpassed, making him one of the most widely collected and highly regarded artists in the world today

Since graduating with a degree in Fine Art from Missouri Southern State University, Matt’s talent has led him to become one of the most collected military artists worldwide. Indeed, amongst the known collectors of his artwork are Prince Charles and President George W. Bush.

Early in his career, Matt worked with DreamWorks Studios, where he once worked with Steven Spielberg and was Art Director for the Medal of Honour video game series. Matt is still involved in video game and film projects, but he now has his own studio which has allowed him to pursue his passion in military and aviation historical artwork. He is now best known for his tributes to the ‘Band of Brothers’ of the US Airborne Divisions, as well as the Tuskegee Airmen and other US military divisions. Indeed, the print ‘In the Company of Heroes’ has become one of the most highly sought-after titles in the field, and is surely one of the most evocative images you will ever encounter.

Having graduated from art college, Nicolas Trudgian spent many years as a professional illustrator before turning to a career in fine art painting. His crisp style of realism, attention to detail, compositional skills and bright use of colours, immediately found favour with collectors and demand for his original work soared on both sides of the Atlantic.

When he paints an aircraft you can be sure he has researched it in every detail and when he puts it over a particular airfield, the chances are he has paid it a recent visit. Even when he paints a sunset over a tropical island, or mist hanging over a valley in China, most probably he has seen it with his own eyes.

Over the past three decades Nick has earned a special reputation for giving those who love his work much more than just aircraft in his paintings. He goes to enormous lengths with his backgrounds, filling them with interesting and accurate detail, all designed to help give the aircraft in his paintings a tremendous sense of location and purpose. His landscapes are quite breathtaking and his buildings demonstrate an uncanny knowledge of perspective, but it is the hardware in his paintings which are most striking. Whether it is an aircraft, tank, petrol bowser, or tractor, Nick brings it to life with all the inordinate skill of a truly accomplished fine art painter.

A prodigious researcher, Nick travels extensively in his constant quest for information and fresh ideas. He has visited India, China, South Africa, South America, the Caribbean and travels regularly to the United States and Canada. He likes nothing better than to be out and about with sketchbook at the ready and if there is an old steam train or aircraft in the vicinity, well that's a bonus!

John Shaw, a native of Nevada, USA, was born in 1961 and began his career in art and graphics in the early '80s. Beginning as an illustrator, Shaw created commercial artwork for a wide variety of clients, such as Lucasfilms Ltd, Major League Baseball, and several major entertainment software companies.
In 1993 his work took a major turn when he began creating paintings with an historical aviation theme, with special attention paid to the World War II era. His award-winning depictions of these aircraft, people and the missions in which they participated have proven extremely popular, particularly throughout the U.S, and have illustrated numerous publications. He has been exhibited extensively throughout the US and the rest of the world and his limited edition prints have enjoyed a huge amount of success, with many of his editions completely sold out and trading for considerable sums on the secondary market.
Over the last ten years John has gained a loyal and rapidly increasing following for his work making him one of the most highly regarded aviation artists in the US and an exciting prospect for collectors as his reputation and talent put him firmly on the world stage.

Keith Burns is an award-winning aviation artist and illustrator. He has illustrated comics for the past decade with Johnny Red being the most recent. In 2012 he joined the Guild of Aviation Artists, winning the 2015 Messier Dowty award for ‘Best Acrylic Painting’ in show. 2016 proved to be a busy year; he was made a full member of the Guild, had his first solo exhibition at the RAF Club in London and won the Guild of Aviation Artists, BAE Systems ‘Aviation Painting of the Year’ for his atmospheric piece Co-operation. Joining the Military Gallery in 2020, he is currently illustrating the Ladybird Expert History series of the Second World War written by leading historian James Holland.

Keith’s ability to capture the power and drama of a scene never fails to capture the imagination and makes him one of the most exciting artists in the industry.