Richard Rees PPS

Statement

As an architect and urban designer, Richard is interested in images of buildings and cityscapes in his pastel painting work.  Different societies and traditions develop unique patterns of settlement and he has been interested in these since he started designing masterplans at the beginning of his architectural career. 

Richard finds the medium of oil pastel is a very expressive one for bringing out the vibrancy of a place and the way that buildings stack, merge and form into townscapes and the pattern of streets and roofscapes.  The sharp and at times, semi-abstract, technique allied with his love of strong colours, allows him to create striking pictures. 

Methodology

Richard works either from pencil sketches done on site or photos, but usually a combination of both.  He creates an A4 colour study over the sketch or photos which sets the colour harmony he is looking for.  The final work is usually around A2 in size and done on coloured paper with a sharp straight edged drawing as a base.  The line is usually covered but some of the paper colour is allowed to remain and that is important in giving cohesion to the pastel painting.  He uses a metal erasing shield to achieve the sharp edges to patches of colour.  

Bio

Richard has been painting and drawing for over 40 years in a variety of media including watercolour, oil paints, pen and ink, oil pastel and pencil.  He is self-taught as an artist but as an architect has been drawing and illustrating his own work since his university days.  In 1984 he became a professional illustrator and Fellow of the Society of Architectural Illustration (FSAI).  In April 2015 he became Chairman of the SAI.

Since retiring from architecture in 2012, Richard has started concentrating on developing further as a fine artist.  He has diversified his use of materials and developed his enjoyment of oil paint and oil pastels in his custom-built studio in Stockwell.  

His current series of rooftop, streets and building views of cities around the world has enabled him to bring together his love and understanding of city forms with his skills as an oil pastel artist – a medium which he employed extensively in his teens.  This has proved to be a very popular subject matter and he sold two thirds of his works at his June 2015 Abbott and Holder solo exhibition.  This also led to commissions in the UK and the Middle East for specific city subjects. 

His current area of interest is the juxtaposition of water and urban forms and he is looking to develop pastel paintings on this theme for a solo exhibition in the near future.

Memberships

Fellow of the Society of Architectural Illustration – Chairman

Member of the Society of Artists in Architecture – Secretary

Qualified architect and RIBA member