John Stoa was born in Dundee, Scotland in 1944 where he commenced his working life in the Dundee Parks Department as a gardener. He also studied crop science at The Scottish Crop Research Institute in Invergowrie Dundee. After getting married he moved south to a fruit farm in Sussex. He gained his National Diploma in Horticulture in 1969 at college in Essex, then moved to a small village in Worcester called Bromyard to work as a manager on Fox Fruit Farm. In 1972 he returned to parks work and provision of outdoor leisure facilities in Dudley then in 1976 moved to Darlington, and in 1984 came north to Livingston new town to the landscape and forestry dept.
However the government decided to wind up the Scottish new towns and redundancy loomed so John took the plunge into an art career in 1992, then returned to his native town of Dundee in 2001.

John's interest in art was established in early childhood, but the magic of selling paintings started when he got his first red dot at Darlington Art Society Annual Exhibition in 1980.
He is self taught but constantly experiments, and studies the work of other contemporary artists. His subjects have covered town to country, floral to figurative, snow scenes, summer landscapes, boats, Scottish castles and pets. His work shows a range of influences, in the early traditional years from the teachings of McIntosh Patrick, who was his local art hero from childhood.

Influence of Jack Vettriano and other modern contemporary artists
Looking for further ideas in style and design John loved the Glasgow Boys work, then he developed a love of colour influenced by Robert Hagen in Australia, Ted Goerschner in USA and Mike Svob from Canada, all modern contemporary artists. The English colourist Ken Howard has a masterly way with light as well as colour, and he introduced the artist model into the figurative paintings. At this time John had been going to evening classes for figure painting in Edinburgh College of Art and he was beginning to produce reasonable figurative images. Inspiration then flowed from the art of Jack Vettriano and the late Robert Lenkiewicz, both masters of figurative painting.

John now tends to paint a reduced range of topics of figure studies, large flowers and snow scenes, although commission work again extends the range as does work for limited edition prints.

John runs art classes and workshops from his Dundee studio and has been publishing limited edition prints throughout his art career, as well as luxury Christmas cards.

He is a member of the Fine Art Trade Guild and represented on the National Artist Register at Axis in Leeds University.

Art Collections and Art Commissions
2007 Downfield Golf Course
2005 Commission to paint Loch Fynne for Scot living in Portugal
2005 Commission to paint Edinburgh Castle for a Scot in south of England
2004 Painting collection selected for a Scot living in Perth, Australia
2003 USA Commission to paint Edinburgh Castle at Hogmany for a wedding gift for a party from Indianapolis
2002 Scottish Parliament - purchase of large oil painting, 32,000 Christmas cards and 100 limited editon prints.
2002 St Columbus Hospice - 30,000 charity Christmas cards.
2002 Sophies Steakhouse and Bar - Fulham Road London.
2000 Woods of Perth - Factory commission and artwork for business stationery.
1999 Campbell Distillery - 4000 postcards
1998 Falcon Marketing Edinburgh - corporate artwork for new buildings.
1995 Tall Ships Race Leith Edinburgh
1994 Edradour Distillery - commission of painting and postcards
1994 Rutland Investment Managers
1993 Nightfreight - painting and Christmas cards.
1993 Morgan Partnership, Glasgow - painting and Christmas cards.
1992 Livingston Development Corporation - paintings for Christmas cards.

John exhibits in galleries throughout Scotland form Edinburgh, Dundee, Blairgowrie, Braemar, Perth, Glasgow, Dunoon, and Forfar. He has also exhibited at Darlington, Lincoln, Hampton Court Flower Show, and the NEC trade show in Birmingham.

Art Exhibitions (One Man)
2007 Small Paintings for Christmas (Studio)
2007 Pittenweem Arts Festival
2006 Studio exhibition
2006 Pittenweem Arts Festival
2005 Christmas Studio Exhibition
2005 Summer Studio Exhibition
2005 Pittenweem Arts Festival
2004 Pittenweem Arts Festival
2004 Artist Summer studio Exhibition
2003 Roseangle Gallery Dundee - One man exhibitions held every year since 1996
2003 Pitlochry Festival Theatre - also 2001 and 1999
2001 Nexus Gallery Edinburgh
2000 Nexus Gallery Edinburgh
1999 Cross Keys Gallery Perth
1998 Hampton Court Palace Flower Show
1997 Corner Stone Gallery Stirling
1997 Wilson Wilson Gallery Croftamie
1997 Rogues Gallery Edinburgh
1996 Oasis Gallery Aberdeen
1995 Artists Studio Tullicoultry
1994 Projections Portobello Edinburgh
1993 Cottage Gallery Newtyle

Contact Information: To make any enquiry, whether to buy original paintings or prints, discuss classes, or art commission work please contact John :

Studio: at 17A Menzieshill Road, Ninewells, Dundee DD2 1PS Scotland UK
Telephone: 01382 665879
email: johnstoa@blueyonder.co.uk
web site: www.johnstoa.co.uk