Coastal oil paintings by Tom McNeight at Whanganui Community Arts Centre

Tom McNeight is showing his coastal oil paintings at the Whanganui Community Arts centre this month. Photo/Stuart Munro

Whanganui painter Tom McNeight has produced a new collection of works that will go on show at the Community Arts Centre in Taupo Quay this week.

His distinctive seaside scenes are inspired by many fishing trips along the west coast of the North Island.

Despite having no formal training, the artist has developed a style that captures the movement of waves and sunlit clouds in his paintings.

"I started out using acrylic paints at first, but I wanted more depth, so I made the switch to oil paints," he says.

He describes his work as rugged and unpretentious and he likes to slap the paint on to create a sense of movement.

While McNeight has experimented with portraiture recently, he says this exhibition is entirely land and seascapes.

Tom McNeight's exhibition opens at 6pm on Friday, January 4, and will be open for viewing from 10am until 4pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 1pm on Saturdays.