Hello! my name is Tobin, and I’m a paintaholic. It was obvious to me from an early age, that if I were to fulfill my most burning desire, it would be to spend my life painting, and that’s what I’ve been trying to do ever since. Both of my maternal grandparents were artists, and a great inspiration. As a child I loved to explore their studios, wonderful worlds of colour and intrigue, a feast for the eyes shared with my brother and sister, both of whom are also artists. I studied fine art for only 2 years, during which time it became clear that I would have to find a commercial purpose for my creativity, so I went on to study Illustration and animation at University. I graduated in 1999, and began a promising career with a successful design company, but after some years the work became less creative, and the London life style became overbearing. So I took a risk, I resigned, packed my bags and left the country looking for inspiration. I found it in Italy, where I set up a studio and spent a couple of years just about scraping a living from my art, hopping from cafe to cafe, bar to bar, exhibiting wherever I could and selling quite well. It was a promising start and one of my most prolific periods. A great experience. It took some time to accept after my return to England that the lifestyle I had become so accustomed to living, and had enjoyed so much, just wasn’t a viable option. Words like pension, mortgage and children began to creep into conversation more often, and remain a constant reality check. So I found work, though this time I had it clear that I didn’t want to use my creativity for anything but my own projects or tasty commissions, and I didn’t want to return to London. I am currently based in Norwich, not far from the little village where I grew up, I work 9-5 as a phenotyping assistant at a Research Park, and paint late into the night when I can, and at weekends.