Barrington Tobin was born in London and trained at Putney School of Art. Prior to working as an artist he was a specialist in early and contemporary music and the tonality of his painting and mark making reflects this. The relationship between painting and music has always fascinated Tobin and he sees great music, architecture, literature and painting as sharing the same vital and spiritual source. As a lifelong collector and custodian of 16th and 17th century vernacular furniture, he feels a living connection between the past and present and through natural materials, which nurtures his creative practice. A strong sense of responsibility and reverence towards the natural world has always guided his creative life, whether that be to ancient trees, birds or to the river which flows through his garden in rural Dorset.
Tobin's work has been exhibited widely in the UK, Europe and America and is held in private and public collections. He has enjoyed a long-standing collaboration with Eames Fine Art with whom he has exhibited regularly at major UK art fairs including the London Art Fair, British Art Fair and the London Original Print Fair, in addition to three major solo shows at Eames Fine Art Gallery: Postcards (2016); New Paintings (2018) and Concord (2019). Tobin was also the subject of a major retrospective curated by Professor Frances Spalding at Clare Hall, Cambridge (2019.) In 2021 Tobin moved from London to rural Dorset and this change in location has been hugely influential on the body of new work that he has produced over the last two years, including a collaboration with master printmaker Nigel Oxley. A major show of new paintings is planned for later in 2025/26 with Eames Fine Art.
To read a full biography of Barrington Tobin, please click here.