Michael Richardson - Portfolio of Works

All of the paintings in this collection were painted out of doors in front of the subject and experiencing the weather conditions of the day. I prefer not to "tidy" these paintings up in the studio but to keep them as a truthful record "warts and all". Sometimes if a subject particularly interests me I will paint a larger studio version using the "plein air" work as reference. Outdoor, or "plein air" painting is technically demanding but provides its own rewards as it is a record of the prevailing light at a given place at a given time and those conditions will never be repeated. Light effects are often fleeting and thus "plein air" painting is always asking questions of the artist. Stay with the memory of the original impression, or change the image to suit the new light conditions?

Generally speaking it is better to stay with the former option but sometimes the change reveals a new image so tempting that it may be better to change, or even abandon the first work and start afresh.

Regardless of the technical flaws that inevitably creep into plein air work however it always has an honesty which cannot easily be reproduced in the studio and which continues to be sought after by art collectors who first recognised the charm of the genre in the days of the French Impressionists.

This is my equivalent of IKEA's famous "Bargain Corner"! I could also define this corner of my website as the "Studio Sale".  Many artists have a sale like this and open their studios from time to time but to save you all that driving about, this is a permanent ever-changing "Studio Sale".

Some of these paintings have been out to galleries or public exhibitions and for one reason or another, their new owners have not been in the right place at the right time!

Others are sketches or studies made with a larger painting in mind and having served their purpose as reference material are now in the "archive". 

Here too are some pieces that have been sold but which for one reason or another I don't have the heart to take off the site as they have special memories for me.

Any pieces in here that do not have a red dot are for sale and are serious BARGAINS! Use the contact form to enquire and get yourself or a loved one a valuable original painting at a greatly reduced and very affordable price!