David Beer started painting at evening classes whilst at Corsham, Wiltshire, where he was a Head Teacher. During this period, he attended courses at the St. Ives School of Painting and became enamoured with St. Ives and its surroundings. In 1986, Beer moved to St Ives and taught for eleven years in Penzance, where he had special responsibility for art within the school and ran in-service art courses for teachers in the area. He was also co-ordinator of the education working party for the St Ives Tate Action Group prior to the opening of the Tate. He retired from teaching in 1988 and is now a full time professional artist. Beer specialises in painting seascapes and landscapes in oils using a palette knife, and also produces life studies using pastel and acrylic. He has exhibited his work in New York and the UK.