Artist Mark Kaiser puts his painting to the test at a Christie's auction

Sep 3 2010 by Graham Young, Birmingham Post

After 20 years quietly reinventing his style and honing his skills, artist Mark Kaiser is set to put himself to the ultimate test.

In November, his favourite painting will be put up for auction at Christie’s in London.

A striking winter scene of St Paul’s Cathedral, with the River Thames deliberately moved closer to the landmark, the 18in x 22in picture currently hangs on a wall at home.

Every time Mark sits down to paint, St Paul’s is his background inspiration, but probably not for much longer.

The image has already been used as a Christmas card, but the twin son of a Polish builder who died when Mark was six is now hoping it will cement his increasing reputation.

The Worcestershire-born artist has a five-year-old daughter by his Polish wife, Ania, and watching Lara growing out of her toddler years has given him similar feelings towards his painting.

“I can see that letting a picture go will be like when a child leaves the nest – there’s a kind of inevitability about it,” he says. “But a friend has advised me that putting it into what’s known as an ‘interior sale’ at Christie’s is a good way of making an inroad towards having people look at your work.

“It’s a scary thing, because your reputation will be on the line. But St Paul’s has been well received by everyone who’s seen it. I painted it after seeing the cathedral for the first time in winter.

“Because it’s behind my easel I’ve become really attached to it.”

If the painting attracts a lot of interest, it could even help Mark to achieve his ultimate ambition.

“One day I’d like to be rich enough to buy back all of my own paintings,” he admits. “Hopefully, I can win the Lottery and do that.”

To date, the Warwick-based artist has completed some 200 works and sold 98 per cent of them. He’s just finished a summer stint selling prints at a Sunday stall in Stratford-upon-Avon’s Bancroft Gardens.

Tourists, in particular, have loved the fact that he can paint someone’s holiday adventures or family home and put the people who live there in the picture, too.

Using photographs to add older relatives, some of whom may be deceased, is another way that Mark adds real personal value to commissions.

Although he has been painting since he graduated from Suffolk University in 1992 with a degree in illustration and graphic design, it’s only recently that he has started to make waves.

His success can be partly attributed to the rise of Leeds’ rock band The Kaiser Chiefs – five years after their debut album Employment – because people now remember his name.

In the past two years, the commissioning value of Mark’s smallest 12-inch square paintings has risen from £150 to £550. A 24-inch by 30-inch painting now starts at £3,500 and his prices are rising all the time.