James Dodds was recently interviewed by Victoria Brzezinski for The Times in the article “Artist James Dodds: ‘Painting boats is my haven – my lifeboat’.” In it, he reflects on the deep ties between his life, his creative practice, and the places he has called home – from restoring a 16th-century mill with his father to building a light-filled studio on the Essex marshes. Dodds describes how these environments shape not only what he paints, but how he sees. For him, painting boats is less about seascapes and more about refuge – a creative lifeline connecting memory, craft, and community. Whether resting in an estuary or tucked beside a riverside shed, his vessels carry more than form and structure; they hold the lived experience of a life closely bound to the sea.
James Dodds 