Stephen Collett has been interested in all forms of art since he sold his first painting at the age of 5. All through his schooling years it was clear that he was destined for a career in the arts. He won several prizes for his work in school, claiming the Art prize at GCSE and A Level, not to mention several draughtsmanship and painting competitions that his teachers encouraged him to enter. At the age of 12 he studied Art with Roger Shuttler a local artist who discovered him at a regional exhibition.

His first larger project involved him being commissioned by the council to paint inspiring murals in his village bus shelter depicting scenes from the village in preparation for the Millennium which he completed when he was only 16. Despite his talent, his advanced ideas on what contemporary painting should be were thought too radical by some, causing him to be thrown out of his A level art class at 17. This led Stephen to change schools in protest leaving him only one year to complete the course. After leaving his new upper school with top marks in both Art theory and practice, he studied Architecture at the University of Liverpool for 3 years before deciding to take up art full time.

His main influences are the French impressionists, Cezanne in particular, however he finds Monet to be a little over rated. But going further back, Turner was and still is Collett’s main influence. He is fascinated by his techniques and practices, being centuries before his time. Beyond that, Whistler, Rothko, Van Gogh and Da Vinci also inspire him.