About Mark Wilson Studio

Mark Wilson Studio is where bold abstract art, a love of landscapes and a deep interest in the creative mind all meet. I create mixed-media paintings in the Algarve, Portugal – and I also help artists and creatives gently quiet self-doubt so they can make braver work.

From lens to canvas

For as long as I can remember, I wanted to draw and paint – but somewhere along the way, school convinced me I “couldn’t”. So I picked up a camera instead.

Photography became my creative voice: capturing fleeting moments, subtle beauty and the feeling of a scene in the click of a shutter. With the encouragement of a supportive teacher I learned to print my own work, built a successful wedding and portrait photography business, and spent years chasing light, reflections and patterns in the landscape.

In 2016 my wife and I moved from the UK to Portugal’s Algarve. The light here is cleaner, sharper and more intense. Even with a red–green colour blindness, I see colour differently – and stepping into painting, I realised that could be a strength rather than a limitation.

Artist Louise Fletcher once told me: “Don’t worry about the colours. Paint the way you see them.” That simple idea opened the door to bold, vibrant palettes, textured mark-making and abstract forms inspired by coastline, weathered surfaces and the small details most people walk past.

Art that makes you feel

I believe art is more than what you see – it’s how it makes you feel in a space. My paintings are rooted in the natural world: the rhythm of waves, the movement of wind over land, the way light shifts across the day.

I work with acrylics, inks, glazes, charcoal, pastels and geli-plate printing, building up layers of texture and marks until something “clicks” – a feeling, a memory, a mood. Everyone sees something different in abstract work. My aim is to create pieces you can live with, that keep revealing themselves over time and gently change the atmosphere of a room.

Creativity, mindset and the inner world

Alongside my art, I’ve spent years working as a hypnotherapist and trainer, helping people reduce stress and anxiety and change unhelpful patterns of thinking. One idea that runs through everything I do is:

"If one person can do something, anyone can learn how to do it"

I’ve seen how often creatives struggle with:

Impostor syndrome and self-doubt
A harsh inner critic
Feeling “not good enough” to share their work
Losing the sense of play they had as a child

That’s why I’m developing workshops like Impostor Syndrome for Creatives and Inner Child for Creatives through Mark Wilson Studio – bringing together art, creativity and gentle mindset tools to help people make more joyful, confident work.

Workshops for creatives

The bigger picture for Mark Wilson Studio

My vision for Mark Wilson Studio is to be more than a place to look at paintings.

Yes, I want to create original artworks (and prints) that people love living with – pieces that spark emotion and memory every time you walk past them.

But I also want this to become a space where creatives can:

Feel seen and understood
Learn practical tools for quieting self-doubt
Reconnect with the playful, curious part of themselves
Explore their own creativity through workshops and, one day, a supportive membership community

In a world moving rapidly towards AI, I care deeply about human-made, heartfelt, imperfectly-perfect work – and about helping others keep that alive in their own way.

A few things about me

I live in the Algarve, Portugal – the light and landscape here inspire much of my work.
I use hypnosis and mindset tools to support my own creativity.
I’m teetotal and fuelled mostly by green tea and coffee in the studio.
I love riding my bike and clock up thousands of kilometres a year on the road.
A red–green colour blindness means I don’t always see colour the way most people do – so I make it bolder.
Before painting, I was a Kodak award-winning photographer and received several awards from fellow photographers.

If you’re someone who loves bold, emotive art – or a creative soul who sometimes gets tangled up in self-doubt – you’re in exactly the right place. Welcome to Mark Wilson Studio.

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