Simon Atack

Simon Atack began drawing aircraft and warships at a very early age. At about 8 years of age Simon Atack was given his first set of oil paints, possibly to save the family library, and he has painted with little else ever since. After regularly winning the school art prize it became obvious to all concerned with his education what his next step should be, and at age 16 Simon Atack commenced formal training at Wakefield College of Art. There Simon Atack studied graphic design, illustration and life drawing, all of which matured his ability to sketch into a disciplined skill. Though grounded in the disciplines of art during this period of training, his skills as a painter in oil are however largely self-taught.

By the mid 1990s he returned to his favorite subjects, painting aircraft, ships and the sea. Much influenced early in his career by the aircraft and ship paintings of Roy Cross, Simon Atack remembers slavishly copying this artists paintings in an effort to get some idea of how they were constructed, even spending his spare cash collecting aircraft model kits solely for the Roy Cross artwork on the boxes! Simon Atack credits much of his inspiration today to this artist. In common with many aviation artists, he also much admired the work of Frank Wooton, particularly the beauty of his cloud scapes and his rich use of color.

Today Simon Atack’s art has achieved the kind of recognition that his blend of natural talent and studious application deserves. His original paintings, always in great demand, have great impact and dimension.