About Nicholas Beall – Oil Pet Portrait Artist

Oil Pet Portraits

My background in natural history illustration and landscape painting allows me to create something truly unique - oil portraits that combine pets with their favorite landscapes or meaningful backgrounds.

What sets my work apart is the ability to combine animals with landscapes - something few portrait artists offer. This comes from my training in natural history illustration and my love of painting the Welsh and Cornish countryside.

Falmouth Art College

My artistic journey began at age 16 at Falmouth College of Art in Cornwall, where I completed a two-year National Diploma in General Illustration. This was at the same time as Melanie was doing her final year at A'levels and one year of foundation course at Carmarthen Art College.

The course allowed me to explore different mediums and understand how professional illustrators work. I also started to learn the art of airbrushing. It was the perfect foundation for the classical, observational painting I do today and it prepared me well for the next stage of my education.

Meeting Melanie at Bournemouth

After Falmouth, I went on to study Natural History Illustration at Bournemouth and Poole College of Art and Design. This was where I met Melanie, who had come from her foundation course at Carmarthen Art College.

I very much enjoyed my two years at art college which allowed me to further hone my skills in being able to create lifelike animal paintings.

Little did we know that our Natural History Illustration Course would lead to a lifelong partnership in both art and life.

Childhood in Cornwall

I grew up in Cornwall and my family are from Polperro. As a child, I always had a pencil in my hand and it was clear from early on that art would be part of my future.

These are two of my early watercolor paintings created when I was about 16 or 17. The one on the left is of Polperro harbour. On the right is a study of Respryn, a local beauty spot near my childhood home.

Even back then, I was drawn to capturing atmosphere, light and place — something that still drives my work today.

From Illustration to Oil Portraits

After art college, I worked for one year at an illustration agency and I created work for books and magazines, mainly encyclopedias and educational children's books. But as photography and digital art became more common, traditional illustrators were used less and less.

In my spare time, I painted harbour scenes and landscapes for galleries, but I knew it wasn't where my heart truly was. Once Melanie started her pet portraits business, I joined her in 1996 and haven't looked back since.

Life in Our Welsh Cottage

This is our little Welsh cottage, which we have slowly renovated over the last 18 years. It looked very different when we first moved in, but we have worked hard to restore it's original charm and character.

We have done much of the renovation work ourselves, with help from professionals along the way. It has been a proper long term project that took around 17 years to fully complete. It's been a huge effort, but deeply satisfying to shape our home with our own hands. Along with restoring its historical elements preserving them for the next generations. If you would like to read more about the renovation and see inside the cottage, have a look at our Old Welsh Cottage page.

It's a fantastic place to live, peaceful, full of personality, and very much home. The perfect environment for creating art.

Inspiration from the Welsh Landscape

Summer is the best time here in Wales. When the weather's fine, we always try to take time away from the studio and head out along the coast. We love our work, but like any job, it's important to gain perspective and recharge.

The Welsh landscape deeply influences my oil paintings. Coastal walks and the ever changing light help me understand how to capture atmosphere and mood in my pet portraits, especially when including landscape elements.

These breaks keep us grounded, inspired and ready to get back to the easel.

Ready to Commission Your Oil Portrait?

I hope you've enjoyed learning about my journey as an oil painter and seeing how my background has shaped my unique approach to pet portraiture. Every pet has a story and I'd love to capture your pets character in oils.

Ready to get started? I'd love to hear about your pet and discuss creating a stunning oil portrait together.