Richard Kitson | Biography
Image by Gavin Joynt
Artist Statement
‘My work primarily investigates (but is not confined to) portraiture and the human figure, in particular paintings of my wife, family, friends and self-portraits. I paint naturalistic portraits without idealisation so that when you encounter one of them, it is as if you have wandered into a space where that person just happens to be. I work from life as the physical presence of a sitter offers me the best chance of conveying their individual nature. At its core, my practice is an ongoing visual autobiography and a view of my life as an artist living and working in the north of England.’
Richard Kitson is a figurative and portrait artist based in Barnsley, South Yorkshire. His work has been featured in prestigious exhibitions, including the Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer Portrait Award at the National Portrait Gallery, London, the Royal Society of Portrait Painters, the Ruth Borchard Self-Portrait Prize, Figurative Art Now, and the Cork Street Open. Kitson has exhibited across the UK and internationally and was a participant in Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2018. His paintings are held in a variety of public and private collections, and he continues to offer portrait commissions and workshops in Barnsley and Yorkshire.