Peter Haigh was raised on a farm near the Yorkshire town of Lockwood. Taking up painting as a hobby at an early age, Haigh sold his first painting at the age of 15. An early training as a textile sample dyer developed his natural admiration for, and understanding of, color, tone, and shapes. Haigh spent seven years in the army during World War II, mostly in the Far East, and his decision to become an artist was firmly decided during this period, as he spent the previous years painting and traveling extensively across the United Kingdom.
Between 1949-55 his work was included in a number of mixed exhibitions including, RBA, NS, US, Roland, Browse & Delbanco, Beaux Arts, Zwemmer Gallery, Leicester Galleries and The Redfern Gallery.
At the beginning of the 1950s, following a show at Wildenstein, Haigh was given financial support to work in France for six months by a wealthy benefactor from the Shell Oil Company.
In 1988, the Pride Gallery put on a very successful retrospective exhibition of his paintings from 1949 to 1985, and, in 1991, another show was held at Ambiente Gero, Galeria de Arte, in Valencia.
Haigh’s early paintings were in the manner of Walter Sickert, whose work (along with Augustus John's) he much admired, but gradually he moved toward geometric abstraction, typically in a muted palette. Haigh was a meticulous craftsman, noting each time he worked on a painting so that he could return to it, utilising all available time from morning light until late in the afternoon.
Haigh died in London at the age of 80.
