Oliver Preston has had no formal training in art or as a cartoonist other than a love to draw that started at the age of 5. Oliver was certainly inspired by his swiss uncle, the well known avant-garde Architect Hans Hostettler and also by his father who gave him his infallible British sense of humor of the very best. He generously laughs at the thought that if his art had been inspired by the British side and the humor by the Swiss!

Gstaad is a village you can simply fall in love with and only a regular since 1965 can understand that. In fact during his pre University gap year, in order to raise money to travel coast to coast accroosss the USA, the young Etonian took refuge in the family chalet in Gstaad for a season and worked as a waiter in one of the famous Mountain luxury restaurants on the Wasserngrat. After university, he worked at Lehmann brothers and was to become successful as a bond trader.

In 1996, he needed a radical change and decided to do what he really loved, art, and that is to draw cartoons. Needless to say his family and friends thought he was completely mad. Being acquainted with marketing notions and a touch of a talent, he was able to sell his art cartoons the same year to the Times, the Spectator and the magazine Punch . He was thankful to be able to draw cartoons of some larger commissions commemorating important transactions in the City and in the past few years he has been able to publish nine books including his cartoons. One of his very best moments was when the Fine Art Society, in Bond Street invited him in 1999 for an exhibition and the owner of the famous club Annabel's purchased his cartoons and hung them in this prestigious clubs such as the famous Annabel's club and George in London . Another round of laughs when he mentions that one of the most recognized and very best cartoons and art hangs in the mens cloakroom.

In 2002, Oliver married Vivien in the village of Gstaad followed by a reception in nearby village of Lauenen. In 2007, he carried out his first exhibition in the luxury of the Palace Hotel and this has continued every year since then. He spends his winter in his chalet and now has his two young children attend the Kennedy International School. The remaining part of the year he lives in the Cotswolds in the United Kingdom.

For Oliver, Gstaad is an absolute joy when it comes to drawing and he is even surprised that he never seems to run out of ideas when it comes to his art. He loves the interaction between the locals and the fur coats, his words for the luxury international jet set. Gstaad is such a wonderful place and keep it quiet; there are no queues at the lifts unlike other ski resorts. What he sees in Gstaad is very much what you can see in most of the elite luxury resorts worldwide.

Oliver believes that our world needs humor and he says that you can say more in a cartoon than you can ever express in writing!

Editorial | Image Courtesy Of Oliver Preston