Keith Gardner RCA - Lighthouse & Puffin Island from Penmon - Oil on Board

Keith James Gardner RCA (1933-2025) - Lighthouse & Puffin Island from Penmon

An original oil on board by Keith James Gardner RCA depicting the lighthouse at Penmon with Puffin Island beyond. Gardner places the distinctive black-and-white lighthouse prominently against brilliant blue water, with the rocky profile of the island stretching across the horizon.

A pale coastal track curves through the right foreground, bordered by dark vegetation punctuated with small flashes of orange, yellow and white. These warmer notes contrast strongly with the intense blues of the sea and sky and draw the viewer into the composition.

The lighthouse itself provides the principal vertical accent. Its reflection is loosely carried into the water below, while Gardner builds the surrounding sea from energetic strokes and changing shades of blue rather than attempting a tightly detailed description.

It is a small but particularly direct coastal painting and a highly characteristic example of Gardner's interest in the landscape and shoreline of North Wales.

Details

Artist: Keith James Gardner RCA (1933-2025)
Title: Lighthouse & Puffin Island from Penmon
Medium: Oil
Support: Board
Inscription: Inscribed verso “Keith Gardner RCA”, “Lighthouse & Puffin Island” and “From Penmon”
Artwork: 23 × 30 cm (9 × 12 in)
Frame: 26 × 36 cm (10 × 14 in)
Condition: The artwork and frame are both in excellent condition.

Penmon & Puffin Island

Penmon lies at the eastern tip of Anglesey, looking across the Menai Strait towards Puffin Island. The lighthouse stands offshore at Trwyn Du and forms one of the most recognisable coastal landmarks in this part of North Wales.

Gardner's inscription identifies the viewpoint specifically as Penmon, placing the painting firmly within the North Wales landscape that formed such an important part of his work.

About the Artist

Keith James Gardner RCA (1933-2025) was born in Liverpool and studied at Liverpool Art School and the Laird School of Art in Birkenhead. His career became closely associated with Liverpool, the Wirral and North Wales, both through the institutions with which he was involved and through the landscapes he painted.

Gardner was elected to the Royal Cambrian Academy in 1977 and maintained a long association with the Academy. He worked as a full-time painter between 1975 and 1985 and subsequently spent thirteen years at the Williamson Art Gallery in Birkenhead.

The Royal Cambrian Academy recorded Gardner as specialising in small oil panels painted on the spot around North Wales and the Wirral. This painting is therefore particularly representative of both the compact format and the geographical area closely associated with his work.

His documented Royal Cambrian Academy exhibits demonstrate the range of places he painted. In 1977 his exhibits included Liverpool Waterfront and Farm near Pentre Foelas. In 1978 he showed Boat Re-Building, Birkenhead, while works exhibited in 1981 included Rhyd-Ddu, Caernarfon Castle, Evening and Central Pier & Beach, Blackpool. The Royal Cambrian Academy's 1989 Summer Exhibition included Walking in the Park and Boats, Heswall, April Afternoon.

In 2019 the Royal Cambrian Academy mounted a dedicated retrospective exhibition of Gardner's work at its Conwy gallery, recognising his long relationship with the Academy and his contribution to painting in North Wales and Merseyside.