Rebecca Harper, Sheered by Sheen, Blinding Sky of Gloam, 2022
Watercolour pencil on watercolour paper, 15 x 21cm, (unframed, from the artist’s sketchbook)
Rebecca Harper’s figurative images are rooted in drawing from observation whether it be from life, borrowed source material, or old photographs found in her family archive. Her subjects and their surroundings take on a dreamlike quality through Rebecca’s distinctive glowing palette and use of translucent layering. Whether working on canvas or paper, the resulting pictures are inhabited by characters that appear both languid and restless; seemingly stopped in time, like snapshots of memories.
This drawing, taken from the artist’s sketchbook, is one of several new studies of the female figure; water is also a constant theme running through her practice. This growing body of work explores a new area of interest for the artist - the mythical world of mermaids and selkies. In Rebecca’s words:
‘The symbolic, reoccurring fish in these images acts as a metaphor for the unconscious, higher self and a feeling of deeper awareness. Since water brings life, all the creatures living beneath its surface symbolise fertility, birth, and rebirth’.
Rebecca studied at the Royal Drawing School, London, followed by the Turps Banana Art School, London. She has exhibited widely in the UK and Europe and was selected for the Bloomberg New Contemporaries exhibition at the South London Gallery in 2018. Anima Mundi Gallery in St. Ives, Cornwall, presented a a solo exhibition of her work, ‘The Waters of Dwelling’ in September 2021. Her paintings were also shown by Huxley Parlour Gallery, London, in 2019. Most recently, Rebecca was selected for the prestigious John Moores Painting Prize in 2021. Rebecca’s studio is in Deptford, south east London.
Watercolour pencil on watercolour paper, 15 x 21cm, (unframed, from the artist’s sketchbook)
Rebecca Harper’s figurative images are rooted in drawing from observation whether it be from life, borrowed source material, or old photographs found in her family archive. Her subjects and their surroundings take on a dreamlike quality through Rebecca’s distinctive glowing palette and use of translucent layering. Whether working on canvas or paper, the resulting pictures are inhabited by characters that appear both languid and restless; seemingly stopped in time, like snapshots of memories.
This drawing, taken from the artist’s sketchbook, is one of several new studies of the female figure; water is also a constant theme running through her practice. This growing body of work explores a new area of interest for the artist - the mythical world of mermaids and selkies. In Rebecca’s words:
‘The symbolic, reoccurring fish in these images acts as a metaphor for the unconscious, higher self and a feeling of deeper awareness. Since water brings life, all the creatures living beneath its surface symbolise fertility, birth, and rebirth’.
Rebecca studied at the Royal Drawing School, London, followed by the Turps Banana Art School, London. She has exhibited widely in the UK and Europe and was selected for the Bloomberg New Contemporaries exhibition at the South London Gallery in 2018. Anima Mundi Gallery in St. Ives, Cornwall, presented a a solo exhibition of her work, ‘The Waters of Dwelling’ in September 2021. Her paintings were also shown by Huxley Parlour Gallery, London, in 2019. Most recently, Rebecca was selected for the prestigious John Moores Painting Prize in 2021. Rebecca’s studio is in Deptford, south east London.
Watercolour pencil on watercolour paper, 15 x 21cm, (unframed, from the artist’s sketchbook)
Rebecca Harper’s figurative images are rooted in drawing from observation whether it be from life, borrowed source material, or old photographs found in her family archive. Her subjects and their surroundings take on a dreamlike quality through Rebecca’s distinctive glowing palette and use of translucent layering. Whether working on canvas or paper, the resulting pictures are inhabited by characters that appear both languid and restless; seemingly stopped in time, like snapshots of memories.
This drawing, taken from the artist’s sketchbook, is one of several new studies of the female figure; water is also a constant theme running through her practice. This growing body of work explores a new area of interest for the artist - the mythical world of mermaids and selkies. In Rebecca’s words:
‘The symbolic, reoccurring fish in these images acts as a metaphor for the unconscious, higher self and a feeling of deeper awareness. Since water brings life, all the creatures living beneath its surface symbolise fertility, birth, and rebirth’.
Rebecca studied at the Royal Drawing School, London, followed by the Turps Banana Art School, London. She has exhibited widely in the UK and Europe and was selected for the Bloomberg New Contemporaries exhibition at the South London Gallery in 2018. Anima Mundi Gallery in St. Ives, Cornwall, presented a a solo exhibition of her work, ‘The Waters of Dwelling’ in September 2021. Her paintings were also shown by Huxley Parlour Gallery, London, in 2019. Most recently, Rebecca was selected for the prestigious John Moores Painting Prize in 2021. Rebecca’s studio is in Deptford, south east London.
