On the arrival of a family it was time to move on and try something more settled, in this case a family hotel in Swanage. Within a year or so of his arrival he was asked to become the honorary secretary of the Swanage Lifeboat. This opened his eyes to the wonderful Purbeck coast, Old Harry, The Pinnacles, Winspit and Kimmeridge Ledges, all scenes of lifeboat service calls.

Art in general and drawing in particular have always been an interest, not least because of a Great Aunt, Alice B Giles, an Edwardian artist of some distinction. Dan’s favourite medium is watercolour as it suits the ever-changing skies and seas, which are his inspiration.

A very significant day in his life was when he became bursar of The Old Malthouse School in Langton Matravers. The school is set in it’s own grounds with wonderful views across the Purbecks to the sea. He has a particular affinity to Purbeck, but other parts of the country are dear to him. The big skies and marshes of Suffolk and Norfolk, the marshes of Essex, Kent and Sussex, the wonderful cliffs and moors of Cornwall, Scotland, the Lakes and of course the sea and the sky anywhere. If there is a theme it is space, light, and movement which is common in all his pictures.