Doug Hyde Biography

Doug Hyde has in recent years become one of the most famous and well known contemporary British artists.  He was born in 1972 and raised in Bristol, in England. Doug Hyde was one of four children. The official Doug Hyde website states that there were two major things in his childhood which influenced him, and therefore his art. These were his sister Emily and his school. Emily, who was disabled, was Doug Hyde’s elder sister. His sister’s disability affected him greatly. He was also influenced by the art department at his school, where art was seen more as a hobby than a career.

Consequently, in the early years, Doug Hyde’s art was created to be viewed by his family and friends only, and not for any commercial reasons. After leaving school he worked in a draughtsman’s office. He went on to take some technical drawings exams and began to work as an illustrator. Many of his illustrations were created using airbrush techniques. In the day Doug Hyde worked for his clients and the evenings were dedicated to his personal art work.

This private and personal art work began to adorn his house and was admired by friends. Eventually one friend who was a great fan of his work persuaded him to give him a piece of art work. This was a turning point in the life and career of Doug Hyde. Following this gift, friends of the friend who had the initial piece of artwork stated their interest. Doug Hyde realised that his work could possibly be sold commercially and eventually contacted DeMonfort Fine art. This was the beginning of his commercial success.

A great majority of the work of Doug Hyde is created using pastels. Much of his work is created on large canvases, with a sense of space. He  paints using his fingers and thumbs. He often paints cartoon like, larger than life characters and animals. Art critics have stated that the work of this artist reaches out to touch people personally. Examples of his work include the famous piece, ‘Monday, Wednesday, Friday,’ which reflects the various emotions we experience as we go through our working week.

He has also published a book entitled, The Man Behind the Smile. This is a publication which contains one hundred color illustrations. You can obtain details of this publication from the official website of the artist. The book is available in a standard version as well as in a deluxe version. It is also possible to obtain limited edition prints of his original art work. These are extremely popular and are likely to become collector’s items. There are also Doug Hyde sculptures available of characters in his drawings.

A number of exhibitions of the work of Doug Hyde have toured galleries in the United Kingdom and he has also recently had a gallery tour in Japan where his work is popular. If you own a piece of artwork by Doug Hyde you can become a member of the ‘Friends of Doug Hyde.’ This enables you to take advantage of online previews of his art work, as well as priority booking for events.