Ed was born in Shropshire in 1955 and had an idyllic childhood among woods, fields, secret pools and ruined barns – all now lost under the sprawl of Telford New Town.

From 1973 to ’75, he attended a Foundation Course at Shrewsbury College of Art and it was here that he first read Tolkien’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ – which has proved a lasting influence in his work. After this, from ’76 to ’79, Ed went on to complete a BA in Fine Art at Cheltenham College of Art, his final show being based on ‘The Lord of the Rings’.

From 1980 to ’89, he worked as a graphic designer/illustrator in advertising. In 1993, Ed chose to follow his heart and leave ‘safe employment’ to pursue his own path and started to create personal works on a mythological theme, mainly in simple, but beautifully intricate pencil drawings. He is heavily influenced by his favourite artist; Burne-Jones, but also the book illustrators; Arthur Rackham, Willy Pogany, Russell Flint and others. Many of these drawings he self-publishes as signed and limited edition prints. His larger pieces of work such as ‘The Wife of Lleu’ can take up to 18 months to draw. Many of his pictures feature the landscapes of Devon, the Lake District and local woods around where he lives today in Cheltenham.

Ed has also undertaken numerous commissions – the most notable being the corporate design for the ‘Wychwood Brewery’ – the world famous ‘Hobgoblin’ beer. He has also produced artwork for ‘Fiddler’s Elbow’, ‘Black Wych’, ‘Oberon’ and ‘Old Devil’ among others.

Ed Org: website