Simon Bull, English/American (1958 - )

Simon Bull was born in Bedfordshire, England. And as the son of an English Military Father, he traveled the world and attended school in Yorkshire, Surrey, Gloucestershire and Leeds where he received a BA (Hons) degree in Fine Art. He studied printmaking and Fine Art under Norman Webster and Norman Ackroyd RA.

His time at Leeds was marked by his interest in and study of the masters, such as Henri Fantin-Latour, Jean-Baptiste-Simon Chardin, and Rembrandt; he wrote his dissertation on watercolorist John Sell Cotman. In his graduating year he exhibited his etching Jackie at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition and his works were acquired by Leeds City Art Gallery.

In 2007 he was invited to create a series of paintings that celebrated the life of Muhammad Ali. Many of these works are now on permanent display in the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky.

In 2009 he was commissioned to paint US President Barack Obama by boxing legend Muhammad Ali.

Bull received multiple National Association of Limited Edition Dealers awards for Graphic Print/Lithograph of the Year. In 2003 he became the first British artist to win the NALED award for his print “The Journey Never Ends”, and again in 2004 for “Bird of Paradise”. He was also honored in 2004 with the NALED Medal of Honor for artistic services to the limited edition industry.

In 2002 he was as one of the artists to commemorate the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.

In 2000 he won the British Fine Art Trade Guild’s Artist Print Award for the top-selling original print artist in Great Britain. He was also shortlisted for the Fine Art Trade Guild’s Best Selling Published Artist Award in 1997 and again 2000.

He immigrated to the US in 2003. He currently lives and paints from his studio in the Monterey Bay area of California. He became an American Citizen in 2011.