My friend, Michael Bartlett, a talented artist whom I met at Aspex Gallery in 2008, has very kindly painted this portrait of me based on a picture he took at my solo show in early 2020.

See more of his work at http://www.michaelbartlett.org.uk

London Art Fair 2013
Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, London N1 0QH

15 January to 20 January 2013

Stand 18 – Long & Ryle Gallery

Long & Ryle will be showing two new drawings which take film as a point of departure:

House by the River, references Fritz Lang’s gothic noir film of the same name in which ominously billowing curtains move out of the shadows to strangle a murderer.

The Conversation considers themes of obsessive secrecy, privacy, and the ambiguous nature of a conversation overheard in a hotel room taken from Francis Ford Coppola’s film of the same title.

Other Long & Ryle artists being shown on the stand include John Monks, Katharine Morling, Simon Casson, Geoff Routh, Helen Napper, Su Blackwell, and Ramiro Fernandez Saus.

The 25th edition of London Art Fair brings together over 100 leading galleries from across the UK and overseas. Museum-quality Modern British art is presented alongside contemporary work from today’s leading artists, covering the period from the early 20th century to the present day.

Opening Hours
Tues 15 January
(Invited guests / Preview & Six Day Ticket Holders) 
6:30pm – 9:00pm
Wed 16 January
11:00am – 9:00pm
Thurs 17 January
11:00am – 9:00pm
Fri 18 January
11:00am – 7:00pm
Sat 19 January
10:00am – 7:00pm
Sun 20 January
10:00am – 5:00pm

A feature on my work written by Martha Alexander was published in the September 2012 edition of Artists & Illustrators magazine.

Dark Places by Martha Alexander

Artist Fran Richardson is always on the look out for new and unusual ideas, so her award-winning drawings are inspired by everything from saints and architects to ‘uncanny’ psychology.

Looking at her large-scale charcoal drawings of domestic interiors, your assumption might be that Fran Richardson is a stickler for disciplined realism and absolute accuracy. And though that’s true to a certain extent, what you might not appreciate is that while they are flawless in their execution, they actually portray imagined spaces. “I take ideas from different places,” she says. “I am interested in the way that perspective is disrupted. Quite often the composition will not follow the laws of perspective and it brings up the idea of looking strange or unreal. It’s all deliberately done with the intention of people looking at it and thinking, ‘that’s not quite right’.”

Viewers often comment on the photorealistic finish to the drawings and it is an observation that Fran welcomes. “The idea it that it looks real but when you look closer it looks wrong,” she explains. “It can be very subtle.”

Fran’s approach is borne out of an interest in the idea of psychological or dream spaces – in other words, imagined settings comprised of the jumbled up elements of a variety of domestic interiors. Her interest in the concept came about as part of the research for her BA in painting from the City & Guilds of London Art School. The artist has always had an interest in psychology and it was only then that she began reading about dream theory. “I found out about the link between the house and the mind,” she says, explaining how the psychologist Jung had dreamt of a house with multiple levels – cellar to attic – and how he related these levels to the subconscious. “Then I went on to read Freud who wrote about the ‘uncanny’ – when the familiar suddenly becomes strange or threatening – so those two lines of enquiry became a starting point for all the drawings in my BA show.”

Fran’s reading has naturally slowed down a great deal since she graduated from her subsequent masters course in 2006. However, given that her work is so anchored in psychological concepts, research is an integral part of her practice –even if some of it does sound slightly surreal to the point of bizarre. “A year ago I had my first solo show at Long & Ryle and the basis for that was [prominent 16th –century Spanish mystic] St Teresa of Avila, who described the spirit as like a crystal. She related the crystal to being a castle with many rooms.”

Nevertheless, such unusual and multifaceted starting points help to keep Fran’s work fresh. “Every so often something crops up – I read about it and it directs my drawing into different areas, but I don’t deliberately go out to read lots of theory.”

Her training at City & Guilds of London Art School wasn’t all purely theoretical however: “The schools is unusual in that it has a lot of focus on drawing as a basis of research and the tutors really support drawing.”

Life drawing classes were offered to students on two evenings of each week and observational drawing was likewise encouraged in the painting department. Unusually, despite studying both a BA and MA in painting, Fran’s affinity for draughtsmanship was such that her final degree show consisted entirely of drawings. That body of work has since formed the basis of the work she is producing now: “My masters and beyond was all about developing the work.”

Fran’s large-scale drawings are underpinned by collage: she collects old books and magazines, the pictures from which will often end up forming part of her completed works. “I tend to keep my inspiration in files so if I come across a book or magazine feature that might be useful, I file it away for reference so I can come back to it later,” she says. “My studio is full of works in progress, notes to myself or just white walls.”

Visiting old building to sketch is an important part of her process. Where possible she tries to get permission to take photographs, too. Fran especially likes Sir John Soane’s Museum in London. Situated in the legendary Bank of England architect’s former home at Lincoln’s Inn Fields, the museum now houses his collections of art and antiquities. “It’s a depository of history and a brilliant starting point,” says Fran. “Not only the objects in the building but the way [Sir John Soane] changed and altered buildings to manipulate light sources. He would have a really dark corridor and put a skylight in to bring a shaft of light down to focus on the different areas. He was playing with chiaroscuro and that’s something that’s still filtering through my work now.”

That use of tonal contrast in her drawings might be inspired by classical architecture, but it is very much down to her, given that the rooms she depicts are ultimately imaginary: “As the drawing develops, I’ll move the light source around and make it very dark, black and velvety.”

Fran was recently shortlisted for the Jerwood Drawing Prize and her pleasure at the acknowledgement goes beyond simply the prestigious nature of the prize itself. “It was really nice to be selected by Rachel Whiteread because I looked at her work a lot when I was working towards my BA dissertation and wrote about the uncanny. Her sculpture came into it – the way she subverts the domestic. I really admire her drawing, too.”

In just five years since graduating, Fran has also been awarded the drawing prize at the National Open Art Competition and a visitors’ choice award at Brighton Festival. Buoyed by her success, she now feels it’s important that artists who focus on drawing are given the recognition they deserve in open art competitions. “To be exhibited alongside painting and sculpture is a huge development if you look at the history of drawing. It was always considered to be secondary to painting and sculpture and it was seen as just something that came before them. It’s good that drawing is starting to be considered as work in its own right.”

The 15th National Open Art Exhibition

10 – 29 December 2011
Open 10am – 9pm daily
Minerva Theatre
Chichester Festival Theatre, Oaklands Park, Chichester PO19 6AP

‘Il Gattopardo’ has been selected by Gavin Turk (artist), Catherine Lampert (former director of the Whitechapel Gallery, London), Lisa Wright (2009 winner), Rosie Emerson (artist) and Francis Hodgson (Financial Times) for the 2011 exhibition.

All work is for sale, admission is FREE.

Panel Led Discussion
19.00 15 December
Piers Ottey (artist), Prof Ed Chaney (expert on the Grand Tour), David Lee (Jackdaw), Steve McDade (Head of Fine Art at the University of Chichester, and Mandy Shepherd (artist) will all discuss their views on contemporary art and the exhibition.

Artist Walkabouts
Tim Sandys- Renton and Piers Ottey talk you round the exhibition.
18.00 12 December
12.00 14 December
12.00 19 December
12.00 21 December

http://www.thenationalopenartcompetition.com/index.php

Exhibition: 10 March – 8 April 2011
Gallery opening times: tues. – fri. 10 – 5.30 + sat. 11 – 2:30
Nearest tube: Pimlico

This exhibition of finely rendered charcoal drawings takes the celebrated 1579 book by the mystic St Teresa of Avila as a point of departure to propose a visual contemplation on perception, memory, and the symbolic nature of interior space.

During a meditation Teresa had a vision in which the soul was ‘a castle made of a single diamond … in which there are many rooms, just as in Heaven there are many mansions.’ This body of work explores the opulent splendour of the various rooms through which the soul in its quest for perfection must pass before reaching the innermost chamber, the place of complete transfiguration. We are invited as voyeurs to enter a private world of intimate spaces imbued with hidden meaning and complex emotions.

Building on the previous series of interiors, Richardson continues to explore the representation of psychological space by blending architecture and furniture from different sources through a process of appropriation, selection, collage, and re-presentation. The fragmented imagery is transformed by design elements such as cropping, reversing, and redrafting. Perspectival irregularities are exploited to subtly disrupt the final composition, suggesting a sense of unease that questions our perception of reality and the enigma of appearances.

The drawing process facilitates the manipulation of tone by employing a meticulous technique that carefully distributes deposits of charcoal onto the surface. Value is achieved by controlling the extent to which the texture of the ground shows through the spread of black: in this sense, we are presented with the materiality of the surface as much as the image. For Richardson drawing is a primary activity and a stand-alone medium; these works are not the evidence of a preliminary stage that serves painting as a conceptual aid, they are finished works in their own right. Charcoal was selected because it is receptive to minor adjustment permitting subtle gradations in tonal value and sharp contrast between the pure white of the paper to the dense, velvety blackness of the shadows, conveying a sense of ethereal, atmospheric mystery that references early film noir.

By combining the imaginative transformation of appropriated imagery with a realist language that evokes the naturalistic qualities of light, space, and atmosphere, Richardson works in the Dutch tradition of painting imaginary architectural portraits. All works on paper are professionally framed to archival standard in hardwood box frames glazed with Water White ultra clear glass, which is anti-glare, anti-reflective, and UV protective.

Richardson was recently awarded The Arts Club Charitable Trust drawing prize at the National Open Art Competition, the Brian Sinfield Fine Arts Award at Pastels Today and the Visitors’ Choice Award at the Brighton Festival Selectors’ Choice exhibition. Drawings were also selected for the Manifest International Drawing Annual 4 and Drawing Room II, a survey of contemporary drawing at the Royal West of England Academy. Fran Richardson is represented by Long & Ryle, London and is a visiting lecturer at the City & Guilds of London Art School, London.

Please contact Emma Wingfield or Sarah Long for further information.

LONG&RYLE 4 JOHN ISLIP STREET LONDON, SW1P 4PX
longandryle.com

Monday 23rd – Monday 30th November
Pallant House Gallery, 9 North Pallant, Chichester PO19 1TJ

‘Untitled – Bed 7’ has been awarded The Arts Club Prize for The Finest Drawing in the Show and will be exhibited at Pallant House Gallery with the other 17 prize winners.

7th November – 21st November 2009

Open 10am – 9pm daily
The Minerva, Chichester Festival Theatre, Oaklands Park Chichester, PO19 6AP

‘Untitled ­ Bed 7’ has been selected by Gavin Turk (artist), Catherine Lampert (former director of the Whitechapel Gallery, London), and James Stewart (Zimmer Stewart Gallery, Arundel).

All work is for sale, admission is FREE.

Having opened its doors to critical acclaim with their inaugural exhibition, Myth and History in September 2009, The Bristol Gallery is now pleased to present New Contemporaries I. The Bristol Gallery’s latest exhibition features the best and the brightest emerging contemporary artists, brought together for the first time at our premises on Bristol’s prestigious Harbourside development. The show explores new parameters and directions, bringing a diverse range of talent and experience to new audiences in the region. The exhibition acts as site for unusual and exciting discoveries, promoting and creating access to vibrant contemporary visual art with a lively assembly of artists working in a range of media including photographs, textiles, abstracts, video, installation and sculpture.

We are proud to present works by Arno, Jan Lewin-Cadogan, Rakhee, Nicola Dale, Cordelia Spalding, Katharine Barker, Paul Wright, Fran Richardson, Alison Black, Susan Bowman, Peter Walker, Michelle Lord and Helen Grundy at affordable prices ranging from £150.00 – £15,000.00.

The exhibition runs from Saturday 7th November 2009 – Thursday 7th January 2010.

New Contemporaries I aims to show new and exciting art that engages the viewer in both looking at and thinking about the art on display; with this in mind The Bristol Gallery has carefully selected artworks to provide broad scope and multiple possibilities for visual interpretation and impact for audiences and collectors throughout the region.

Curated by Andrew Price and Holly Lopez.

Gallery Opening Hours:
Monday – Friday: 9am – 6pm
Saturday and Sunday: 10am – 5pm
Late night opening: Thursday until 8pm

Further Information:
The Bristol Gallery
Building 8, Unit 2
Millennium Promenade
Harbourside
Bristol BS1 5TY

Tel: 0117 930 0005
Website: www.thebristolgallery.com

I am showing work with Long & Ryle at Art London 8-12 October 2009 at the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, London. http://www.artlondon.net

Fran has been awarded the Visitors Choice Prize by visitors to the ‘House: Art and Domestic Space’ show on recently at The Regency Town House. Throughout the Brighton Festival visitors were able to vote for their favourite artist taking part in the Selectors’ Choice exhibition.

The Selectors’ Choice exhibition showcases work of artists exhibiting in the Open Houses. The exhibition, chosen by curators from Brighton Museum, Pallant House Gallery Chichester and The Regency Town House, mixes accomplished, dynamic and engaging work in a stunning gallery space. ‘Untitled – Chair 3’ and ‘Untitled – Bed 5’ have been selected by Nicola Coleby (Exhibitions, Brighton Museum and Art Gallery), Simon Martin (Assistant Curator, Pallant House Gallery, Chichester), and Woodrow Kernohan (Director, Permanent Gallery).

The domestic context of The Regency Town House forms the perfect setting for an open exhibition based on the theme of ‘House’. Over 80 artists submitted work, and the work chosen provides an imaginative discourse on the theme. ‘House’ is explored through its association with domesticity, shelter, enclosure, space, materials, family, memory and many other meanings. The work ranges from complex to deceptively simple, from evident association with the theme to more subtle exploration that rewards engagement. Assemblages, moving image work, paintings and prints are combined in a thought provoking exhibition in the resonant setting of this Regency period townhouse in the midst of restoration.

‘Untitled – Bed 8’ has been awarded the Brian Sinfield Fine Arts Award at the Pastels Today exhibition. The drawing was selected from an exhibition of the best of contemporary pastel paintings and drawings in the UK on show at the Mall Galleries, The Mall, London. On show was a variety of work in pastels, oil pastels and charcoal, reflecting the diverse nature of the medium, and included work by the late Mark Leach and invited artist John Emmanuel.