Description
Gary Bunt (1957 – 2025) – Down By The Sea
Hand Written Poem Verso – Down By the Sea my lover & me of fifty years or more, many times I’ve held her hand upon this old sea shore.
Oil on canvas
Signed bottom left, Signed & Dated 2008 to Rear.
Painting Size : 20 x 24″ Inches – Framed Size 28 x 32″ Inches
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Gary Bunt (1957 – 2025) – Information
Gary was a beloved British self-taught artist celebrated for his charming, naïve-style paintings that captured the warmth, nostalgia, and simple joys of rural English life.
Born on September 29, 1957, in East Peckham, Kent—then surrounded by hop fields—Bunt grew up in a working-class family. His father worked as a building-contracts manager, and his mother on local farms; he had one sister, Lesley. He enjoyed a happy childhood filled with fond memories of the countryside.
Early on, Bunt showed artistic promise and was offered a place at art college, but he chose instead to pursue a career in music as a guitarist, playing in bands while working in the building trade alongside his father and uncles. This period involved years of self-indulgence, including struggles with alcohol, before he met his wife Lynn, who helped him turn his life around.
In his mid-to-late 30s, Bunt returned seriously to painting, initially selling Impressionist-style works. A pivotal moment came around age 41 with his first solo show coinciding with a diagnosis of vocal cord cancer.
During two years of treatment and recovery, he reflected deeply on his childhood and faith, emerging with a distinctive new style: simple, heartfelt, and deeply personal. He credited his illness with giving him the freedom to paint authentically, often describing it as painting “the nice bits” from the mess in his head.
Bunt’s paintings frequently feature a burly, braces-wearing everyman figure named Bert (initially modelled on his father, who passed in 2015, but later representing the artist himself) and his loyal dog. These characters wander through idyllic villages, farmyards, gardens, beaches, and fishing scenes reminiscent of mid-20th-century Britain.
His work draws inspiration from British artists like Stanley Spencer, Christopher Wood, Alfred Wallis, the Nicholsons, and others, blending naïve charm with sophisticated composition, rich impasto, and a joyful palette. Many pieces include his own uplifting poetry, and faith—particularly a personal, approachable Christianity—infuses much of his output, with biblical scenes reimagined in Sussex and Kent landscapes.
Based in East Sussex, Bunt worked daily in his beloved garden studio (“the shed”). He exhibited widely with Portland Gallery and others, achieving major success with sell-out shows, including multiple at the Saatchi Gallery (e.g., The Simple Things, Marrows, Spuds and Onions).
His paintings and sculptures gained a global following for their comforting, redemptive quality in a turbulent world. He also created tributes to inspiring artists and series exploring themes like creation and everyday pleasures.
Bunt passed away suddenly on July 4, 2025, at the age of 67. He is survived by his wife Lynn, a daughter, and a son from an earlier marriage. His art continues to bring joy, peace, and a reminder of life’s simple beauties to collectors worldwide.
Gary Bunt’s legacy is one of hope, gratitude, and the redemptive power of creativity—a working man who found his true calling later in life and shared it generously through paintings that feel like coming home.
