Ken Howard RA: Recent Small Oils of London, Venice and Cornwall

15 June—23 September 2009

In the Sir Hugh Casson Room for Friends of the Royal Academy

Free entry

Opening hours
Open to the public daily 4-6pm
Fridays until 10pm

Ken Howard RA, Dora Reflecting Venice 08. Oil. Courtesy of the artist and Richard Green.This exhibition is a wonderful opportunity to view recent oils by Ken Howard RA. Having initially studied at the Royal College of Art and begun his career as a war artist, he has now become one of the best-selling artists of his generation. The subjects explored reflect the artist’s passions and experiences of his life in London, Venice and Cornwall, three of his favourite subjects of the moment.

"I love painting Venice. I love painting women in my studio and I love painting Cornwall... In the end you paint what you are... Painting is about revelation, a way of seeing and celebrating the world we live in and helping people to become visually aware."

The paintings in this exhibition were all produced directly in front of the subject. This allows Howard to capture the effect that light has on his subject matter, be it a London urban scene, or a model in his studio. In order to do this he works quickly, ensuring that he is able to capture the ever changing conditions that are created.

"It took me years to learn that the only way you can paint light is to paint dark. It was a revelation."

Howard sees himself as an orchestrator of tone: "A painter should think of himself as a musical instrument and he spends his life tuning that instrument to express the beauty of nature."

• Royal Academy of Arts