Since his childhood Peter has always loved art, admiring it, and, what's more, doing it.

It was while he was living in Swindon, Wiltshire, that he decided to take painting seriously and exhibited in and around the town. His first solo exhibition was in the town's cultural pub, The Beehive. At the time the landlord was Noel Reilly, (bless him, now departed from this world) who, on introducing Peter muttered the immortal words in a drunken Limerick drawl, 'Peter Hemming is not a great artist, but he is a local artist'. The whole place fell apart with laughter, but more importantly the paintings flew off the walls!

Since that evening Peter the painter, great or not, has never looked back.

On April 1st 2001 he gave up the wild life of Swindon to spend a six month summer holiday, painting on the Greek island of Kefalonia. Seven years later he moved on, but not before he had opened The Gallery in Argostoli, the island's capital, which was visited by thousands of people, mainly tourists, but by locals too. He became well known in the town and integrated into the local community, before spending his two last summers there exhibiting in the historic Bell Tower that overlooks the Cabana square.

His weekly internet diary, chronicling his Kefalonian lifestyle was read by many and spawned a cult following and has formed the foundation of his book, "Oil Paint and Greece - Memories of Kefalonia".

As wonderful as Kefalonia was Peter knew that it wouldn't be forever, and he and his partner Pam moved closer to home .... the Allier region of central France, in the north of the Auvergne, an area not unlike the Cotswold district of England, which borders Peter's birthplace, the Vale of Evesham. He settled well and felt at one with the landscape, wooded valleys and huge skies.

France though, just as Greece had been, was only transitory and in late 2010 he dropped in to Durham. After moving back and forth across Europe he says that this is the last move; in his own words, 'I feel privileged to live in such a beautiful place, why should I move'.

Peter paints mainly with oils on canvas in his atelier, (French, meaning workshop,) but can be regularly seen around Durham doing what he enjoys most, pencil sketching ...... weather permitting that is.

Much of the artwork on the pages of the website is for sale. Please use the contact form to ask about purchase details, to make a comment about the website, or just to say hello.