Artist Bio
British painter Richard Stuttle isolates the intense, fleeting beauty of extreme sports in superbly crisp, spectacular and often-vertiginous oil compositions. From pristine slopes in the French Alps, where he spends winters painting and snowboarding, to gritty city streets where he follows skateboarders and parkour practitioners, Stuttle alternates between nearly photographic hyperrealism and a vividly lit and stylized aesthetic evocative of Expressionist woodblock prints. Both approaches suggest passionate reverence for athletes. When meticulously detailed, his paintings pay tribute to the perfected physical and mental conditioning of contemporary athletes in a manner similar to classical Greek sculpture. In the comparatively more dramatic urban scenes, the silhouetted sportsmen become mysterious creatures more akin to superheroes.
In both cases, Stuttle foregrounds the sublime rush of sports like skiing and surfing, transferring their surge of adrenaline to gripping tableaux. Figures are perfectly composed yet simultaneously on the verge of losing control. Stuttle focuses our attention on his sharply rendered athletes, beacons of poise amidst blurred landscapes tumbling off into the distance.
Statement by Agora Gallery New York, USA.
"I’ve always been interested in art and had a love for the old masters; Rembrandt, Turner and Caravaggio are a few of my gods. Travelling to different parts of the world I've found a whole new universe of potential, pushing the boundaries of what can be done through art. From the wonderful landscapes and horizons of Australia to the dramatic mountain ranges of the French Alps, nature inspires me to pick up my paintbrushes. Art is everywhere I look there is a painting at every turn.
I love working in oils for the richness, glow and feeling of substance as you work. Watercolours are another of my favourites for painting on location and for the softness they bring, the delicate way they must be treated to produce the finish and effect you desire.
Painting a picture requires time and energy, thought and vision. A painting highlights the feeling and atmosphere of a scene, the world is an interpretation of what's seen by the individual, making art purely unique to the artist who had the thought to create it."
by Richard Stuttle
Background
Cooking
What is the difference between creating a meal and an oil painting on canvas? Both require inspirational creativity, both need a vibrancy that attracts the onlooker. Colour, texture and appearance - they're all in there.
From an early age I have had a great passion for food, cooking and learning about different flavours and foods. A work placement from school in a busy hotel kitchen and I was hooked. College seemed the next logical stage where I worked as well as studied full time. I moved to Cambridge and worked in a busy restaurant, in the following years working in various high standard kitchens around the UK gaining knowledge and experience from fellow Chefs. My passion and creativity was for the pastry section, where I refined my skills.
Travel took hold of me and with my catering background I didn't find it difficult working in the places I explored, these experiences opened my eyes to different cultures and cuisines from around the globe. Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and many European countries.
Adrenalin
After discovering skateboarding in my early teens my life became richer. I had a passion that gave me the extreme pleasure, pain and technical difficulties my body and mind needed. On a daily basis I would skate, learn new tricks and meet like minded people. After fifteen years I still get the same buzz and adrenalin rush. Your personality comes through in the style you ride. Skateboarding has always played a major role in my life and always will. To get the board to respond to your body and look natural as you ride is a beautiful form of art.
Snowboarding came in to my life in my early twenties. I did my first season in Meribel - The Three Valleys, French Alps. A picturesque resort in a pure setting of sheer and unquestioned beauty, the sport grabbed me. I got the same adrenalin buzz while being visually stimulated by the awesome backdrop. All my senses were overwhelmed. I have now returned to the Three Valleys for nine seasons. Each year, as I grow as a person, my level of appreciation for my environment grows. I now see the mountains now in a totally different light and become aware of the world on another level. Snowboarding is an Art that takes a life time to master and even then there is always more to learn.
