See the world’s greatest athletes captured on canvas at Warwick exhibition

One of just 12 official BT Olympic artists, Jeremy Houghton is showcasing at the Lord Leycester Hospital paintings he created over the past two years while watching competitiors in the London 2012 Games at training events.

It was at the office of his father, Christopher Houghton, a managing partner at Warwick law firm Moore & Tibbits, that Jeremy’s talents as a sports artist were spotted by the Olympic organisers.

He said: “I wanted to do a show for Warwick, especially because that’s where it all began.”

Having, in his earlier days, followed his father’s advice and trained as a lawyer, the 38-year-old said he then “saw the light” and trained at the Slade School of Fine Art in London and in Aix-en-Provence in France.

Jeremy also spent six years running an art school in Cape Town in South Africa, but now lives in Broadway in the Cotswolds and paints professional full-time.

He said: “Living in the Cotswolds, I am surrounded by sport and I like participating myself.

“People don’t tend to go to church anymore at the weekend – they go to support their sports teams.

“It’s nice to produce paintings from which people can take enjoyment and understand.”

Although being an official Olympic artist has not meant that Jeremy has been given free tickets to Olympic events, what he has been given could be seen as something a bit more special.

He said: “I have been able to go to training sessions in all sorts of different sports to observe, sketch and take photographs, then I take these and my memories back with me to my studio.

“It’s very much painting of the athletes at work. I am not interested in portraits, but rather, the whole vision of what they do.

“Sailing has been great because you have not just the athlete, but also the boat, the water, the spray, the reflections and everything else that comes with it.”

He added: “We have been given access to the world’s best athletes in a much more intimate way. It has been a really special two years and an absolute privilege.”

Jeremy’s exhibition is on at the Lord Leycester Hospital in Warwick on Thursday from 2pm to 4pm and next Friday (July 27) from 10am to noon. Admission is free.