The paintings and watercolours of Ken Howard are among the most vivid portraits of the world around us by a living painter, and recall the era of Monet, Whistler, Sargent and Sickert. His subjects range from the contemporary - windsurfers and Florentine street scenes - to the timeless - Venice and the nude. A unifying theme running through his work is the painting of light, especially sunlight, seen contre-jour at various times of the day and captured with accuracy, often in the briefest free sketches. Tracing Howard's career, this book follows him through art school at Hornsey and the Royal College; national service in the Royal Marines; as official artist in Northern Ireland; on commission overseas; and, during the last decade or so, concentrating on extending his artistic range. Within subject categories which have consumed his attention over this period, such as Venice, Cornish beaches and studio interiors, the book reproduces some of his best work. The text, which is based on a series of interviews with the artist, records his approach to painting and ideas about art, as well as individual descriptions about the creation of the paintings in the book.