"It's hard to say exactly what makes a painting great....Its flatness and its depth, its ease and its complexity, a kind of preciousness thats also a kind of throw-away, a risk factor. Who gives a damn? Charming Baker's paintings are great."
DAMIEN HIRST
Born in Hampshire in 1964 Charming Baker spent most of his childhood travelling around the world with his father, a Commando in the British Army.
After graduating from Central St Martins, Baker returned as a lecturer and worked as a graphic designer and illustrator for the BBC and the Daily Telegraph.
Throughout this period Baker developed his own body of work and was persuaded to participate in notable exhibitions in London and New York. In 2011 Baker's exhibition at Mercer Street Studios in London cemented his places as a rising star of the contemporary art scene.
In 2012 Baker's sculpture Triumph in the Face Of Absurdity, a collaboration with fashion designer Sir Paul Smith, was exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Baker's exhibition Lie Down I think I Love You in 2013 in Los Angeles caused mass media interest across America.
Charming Baker's confrontational drawings explore eternal themes of childhood innocence, life, death, love and the human response to joy, fear and despair. He uses dark humour and irony frequently referencing literary classics. Baker puts to question the preciousness of art and beauty, intentionally and playfully drilling, cutting and even shooting bullets at his completed works.
Baker says of his works " Nothing is only ever one thing, I don't see why I shouldn't bend or break an image to alter its original meaning, even if only to entertain."
Charming Baker's works can be found in private collections internationally including those of Frank Cohen and New York art dealer Alberto Mugrabi.
Baker lives and works in London and is committed to raising money for charity through his work.