Child's Play

Toni Goffe

Toni Goffe studied painting, illustration and (secretly) double bass at Southampton College of Art in Hampshire between 1952-1956, gaining a National Diploma in Design. On completing the course, he moved to London where he freelanced as an illustrator and studied painting with a number of private tutors. He supported this by playing double bass professionally in many notable London jazz bands. During this period, Toni started illustrating children's books on a freelance basis.

In 1960, Toni married Jill, a fellow art student, from Southampton College of Art, and moved back to Hampshire where they started The Pendulum Gallery in Selborne, specialising in natural history subjects and later modern paintings. The gallery also provided Toni with a platform to exhibit his own oil paintings, watercolours, gouaches and pastels, as well as those of other local artists.

In 1982, he moved to Boston, USA, to direct The John Stobart Gallery on Lewis Wharf, concentrating solely on oil painting and being privileged to study with John Stobart himself, the renowned marine painter. He exhibited in numerous galleries along the East Coast of America between 1982 and 1985, in both mixed and one-man shows.

Toni returned to Hampshire in England with his family in 1985, continuing to work freelance as an illustrator and painter. His landscapes and seascapes won him great acclaim, with exhibitions both in the UK and Ireland. Toni's local gallery, The Allen Galley in Alton, has held a one-man exhibition of his work regularly over the past ten years, and Toni's work continues to be in much demand across the Home Counties as well as further afield.

Toni received formal recognition for his work in 1993 when he received the Gold Medallion Book Award for his illustrations for the children's book, Just In Case You Ever Wonder. He joined the Halcyon Gallery and Washington Green in 1999, with numerous originals produced as lithographs featuring his pet cats Mungo and Mingus. A collection of his work was also recently featured in the Halcyon Gallery's 'Art In Miniature' exhibition.

Toni has been interested in martial arts since he was 14 years old, obtaining his 3rd degree black belt in Judo, and recently his 4th Dan black belt in Ki Aikido. One of his other interests is Tai Chi and he has just finished directing his sixth Tai Chi instructional video film.

See books by Toni