Richard Heys

In my practice I work primarily as an abstract artist, exploring pure colour and form, the substance of paint and ground, and the tensions between the physical processes of making and the ‘life’ in the piece. I strive to create paintings with presence, paintings which have atmosphere and countenance.

For the last few years I have been working in a beautiful light filled studio in Sussex, England exploring tools and processes which disguise the hand. I have found a greater freedom through this limitation and its challenges. I explore light and darkness and pure colour journeys, working with transparency and glazing to create vibrant surfaces.

My paintings were selected for the ING Discerning Eye exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London in 2015 & 2016. In 2017 my work was selected for the prestigious Creekside Open & the National Open Art Competition.

BA (Hons) Fine Art (Sunderland Uni) 1986
Diploma in Sculpture Emerson College 2001
PGCE (DTLLS) Central Sussex College 2012

CV from 2014 to the present:
2014 Brighton Art Fair
2014-17 Pure Arts Group selected member & showed works at the Pure Autumn Fair Battle in 2014, 2015 & 2016
2015 ING Discerning Eye Exhibition, London, 4 works selected
2015 Brighton Art Fair
2016 ING Discerning Eye Exhibition, London, 3 works selected
2016 Hop Gallery Open, Lewes, 3 works selected
2016 Brighton Art Fair
2016 The Other Art Fair, Bristol
2016 The Other Art Fair, Truman Brewery, London
2017 Sevenoaks Visual Arts Forum Open, Sevenoaks, curated by Kenton Lowe of the Blackshed Gallery
2017 Threads Open Exhibition, Espacio Gallery, London
2017 Men's Work, Kaleidoscope Gallery, Sevenoaks
2017 Creekside Open, London, selected by Jordan Baseman
2017 Refuge: In search of safety, Fringe Arts Bath (May-June)
2017 Threads Open Exhibition, Dundas Street Gallery, Edinburgh (July)
2017 Summer Salon, Martyrs' Gallery, Lewes (July)
2017 Featured Artist, Ashdown Gallery, Forest Row, Sussex (July)
2017 Kunsthuis Gallery Summer Exhibition, Crayke, North Yorkshire (June - August)
2017 The Other Art Fair, Bristol (September)
2017 The Other Art Fair, London (October)
2017 Kent Painters Group Exhibition, Sevenoaks (October)
2017 21st National Open Art Exhibition, London (November) - 2 works selected
2017 Winter Salon Exhibition, Rye Creative Centre, Rye (November - December)
2017 SFSA Painting Open, No Format Gallery, London (December)
2017 Solo Show, Dornach, Switzerland (October 2017 - January 2018)
2018 Featured Artist. Ashdown Gallery, (February to April)
2018 The Other Art Fair, London (March)
2018 Our Earth exhibtion, Kunsthuis Gallery, Yorkshire (March 2018 - March 2019)
2018 Bath Open Art exhibition, Bath (May/June)
2018 Maker's Mark, No Format Gallery, London(July)
2018 Solo Show, Millyard Gallery, Uppermill, Yorkshire, (August-September)
2018 Summer Salon, Martyrs Gallery, Lewes, (August-September)
2018 Solo Show,Werfmershalde 19, 70190 Stuttgart-Mitte, Germany, (July - September)
2018 The Other Art Fair, London (October)
2018 Kent Painters Group, Sevenoaks (October)
2018 Art Source Art Fair, Dublin (November)
2018 SFSA Painting Open, Curator's Selection Nov/Dec)
2018 London Ultra, The Bargehouse, South Bank, London (December)
2018 SFSA Painting Open, London (December)
2019 The Other Art Fair (March)
2019 Holy Mountains, solo show, Forest Row (April - May)
2019 Featured Artist, Ashdown Gallery, Forest Row, Sussex (May)
2019 South East Open Studios (June)
2019 SVAF Open, Kaleidoscope Gallery, Sevenoaks, Kent (September)
2019 The Other Art Fair, London (October)
2019 Pure 10th Anniversary Exhibition, Battle, Sussex, (October)
2019 London Ultra at the Bargehouse, South Bank, London (October-November)
2019 Winter Open Studio, Emerson College, Sussex (November)
2019 SFSA Painting Open, No Format Gallery, London, (December)
2019-20 Solo show, Kaleidoscope Gallery, Sevenoaks, Kent
2020-21 Winter Group Show 2020, Linden Hall Studio, Deal, Kent (December 2020 to January 2021)

My work is currently on show at Clifton Fine Art in Bristol, at the Melford Gallery in Mayfield and at Silson Contemporary in Harrogate.

Upcoming shows:

Selected Artist, Pure 360, Pure Arts Group, April 2021 - I will be interviewed about my work & practise on 16th April at 6 pm
South East Open Studios, 5 - 20 June 2021