Contemporary British Painting is an artists' collective of over 60 members, founded in 2013 by

Robert Priseman Robert Priseman (born in Spondon, Derbyshire in 1965) is a British artist, collector, writer, curator and publisher who lives and works in Essex, England. Over 200 works of art by Priseman are held in art museum collections around the world in ...

with the assistance of Simon Carter. It is a platform for contemporary painting in the UK "seeking to explore and promote critical context and dialogue in current painting practice through a series of solo and group exhibitions; talks, publications and an art prize". ‘Contemporary British Painting’ also facilitates the donation of paintings to art collections, galleries and museums in the UK and around the world.

History

In 2013 British artist and curator

developed a series of solo painting exhibitions for the Crypt in

St Marylebone Parish Church St Marylebone Parish Church is an Anglican church on the Marylebone Road in London. It was built to the designs of Thomas Hardwick in 1813–17. The present site is the third used by the parish for its church. The first was further south, near ...

in collaboration with The Revd Canon Stephen Evans (Rector of St Marylebone) and artist Simon Carter. The aim of the project was to explore themes from the perspective of practicing painters which held a particular 21st century resonance. Following the initial programme of solo exhibitions at the crypt a group drawn from the exhibited painters formed an

advisory board An advisory board is a body that provides non-binding strategic advice to the management of a corporation, organization, or foundation. The informal nature of an advisory board gives greater flexibility in structure and management compared to the ...

. Out of this, a series of group exhibitions was developed along with a series of talks, reading groups and the donation of paintings by members of the group to art collections, galleries and museums in the UK and around the world. This was further enabled through the formation of an external advisory board including members

Michael Peppiatt Michael Henry Peppiatt (born 9 October 1941) is an English art historian, curator and writer. Biography Son of Edward George Peppiatt (died 1983), B.Sc, ARCS, of Silver Birches, Stocking Pelham, near Buntingford, Hertfordshire, technical and ...

(owner and publisher of Art International 1985-1995 and board member of the

Palazzo delle Esposizioni The Palazzo delle Esposizioni is a Neoclassicism, neoclassical exhibition hall, cultural center and museum on Via Nazionale (Rome), Via Nazionale in Rome, Italy. History Designed by Pio Piacentini, it opened in 1883. It has housed several exhi ...

, Rome), Amanda Geitner (Senior Curator of the

Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts The Sainsbury Centre is an art museum located on the campus of the University of East Anglia, Norwich, England. As part of its relaunch in 2023 under new executive director, Jago Cooper, the Sainsbury Centre became the first museum in the wor ...

, 1998-2015 and Director East Anglian Art Fund), Professor Rebecca Fortnum (Director of Graduate Studies in Fine Art

Middlesex University Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated to MDX) is a public research university based in Hendon, northwest London, England. The university also has campuses in Dubai and Mauritius. The name of the university is ...

and Dr Lisa Wade (Head of Department, Arts and Humanities,

University Campus Suffolk The University of Suffolk is a public university situated in Suffolk and Norfolk, England. The university was established in 2007 as University Campus Suffolk (UCS), founded as a collaboration between the University of East Anglia and the Unive ...

). In 2014 ‘Contemporary British Painting’ launched ‘Painting of the Day’, a platform for artists to submit images of their paintings, with those selected being featured on the groups social media platforms in ‘Painting of the day’ at 11.00am each day. This was followed in 2015 by the development of a monthly ‘Reading Group’ for painters in collaboration with Westminster Art Library and

The Minories, Colchester The Minories is a Grade II listed building and gardens situated at the east end of High Street in Colchester, Essex, England, near Hollytrees Museum, Hollytrees, Gate House and Colchester Castle. It currently houses The Minories Galleries. Ea ...

and a painting prize which was launched in 2016.

The Contemporary British Painting Prize

‘The Contemporary British Painting Prize’, was launched in 2016 and is open to artists of any age and nationality living and working in the UK. The winner is awarded a solo exhibition at

Swindon Art Gallery Museum & Art Swindon, formerly Swindon Museum and Art Gallery, is a museum and gallery in Swindon, England. It is run by Swindon Borough Council and since 2024 has been housed within the council's offices at Euclid Street, Swindon. History T ...

, a £2,000 purchase prize of their painting which enters the ‘Priseman Seabrook Collection of 21st Century British Painting’ and a critical essay on their practice. Shortlisted artists participate in a group show at The Riverside Gallery,

Museum of Richmond The Museum of Richmond in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is located in Richmond's Old Town Hall, close to Richmond Bridge. It was formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 28 October 1988. An independent museum and a register ...

, London and Huddersfield Art Gallery.

Selected group exhibitions

*(2017) Anything Goes? Art Bermondsey Project Space, London *(2016) Contemporary British Painting: Summer Show, The Quay Arts, Isle of Wight, UK *(2016) Slippery and Amorphous, The Crypt, St Marylebone Parish Church, London *(2015) Lines for Agnes, The Crypt, St Marylebone Parish Church, London *(2015) Brentwood Stations of the Cross,

Brentwood Cathedral The Cathedral of St Mary and St Helen is a Catholic cathedral in Brentwood, Essex, England. It is the seat of the Diocese of Brentwood. History Brentwood Cathedral began in 1861 as a parish church built in a Gothic style. This relatively smal ...

, Essex, UK *(2014) Contemporary British Painting, Huddersfield Art Gallery,

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confl ...

, UK *(2014) @paintbritian, Ipswich Art School Galleries,

Ipswich Museum Ipswich Museum is a registered museum of culture, history and natural heritage, located in a Grade II* listed building on High Street in Ipswich, the county town of Suffolk. It was historically the leading regional museum in Suffolk, housing ...

, Ipswich, UK

Members

Artist members include: David Ainley,

Iain Andrews Iain Andrews (born 1974) is a contemporary English painter. He lives and works in Manchester, England. He received a Bachelor of Arts with Honours (BA Hons) in Fine Art and a Master of Arts (MA) in Painting from University College of Wales, Ab ...

Amanda Ansell Amanda Ansell (born 1976) is an English artist. She studied Fine Art at Norwich University of the Arts between 1995 and 1998 and then at the Slade School of Fine Art, University College London from 1998 to 2000. After living in London for seve ...

Claudia Böse Claudia Böse (born 1963 in Nueremberg) is an abstract painter and has been based in Suffolk, England, since 2002. Böse graduated from the Royal Academy of Arts in 1996 and is a member of the artists network Kunstnetz International. Her work ...

, Julian Brown, Simon Burton, Simon Carter, Lucy Cox, Jules Clarke, Andrew Crane,

Pen Dalton Penelope Dalton is an artist, critic and writer. Education Dalton trained at Goldsmiths, University of London and Brighton University and gained a PhD in Creative studies from Plymouth University in 2008. Career Dalton taught studio practice ...

, Lisa Denyer,

Annabel Dover Annabel Dover (born 1975 in Liverpool) is a British artist. She has a BA (Hons) in fine art from Newcastle University (1998), an MA in fine art from Central Saint Martins, London (2002), and a teaching qualification (PGCE) in art and design from ...

, Natalie Dowse,

Nathan Eastwood Nathan Eastwood was born in Barrow-in-Furness, England in 1972. He graduated from Byam Shaw School of Art in 2009. Eastwood was a finalist in the 2007 'Celeste Art Prize' and won the inaugural 'East London Painting Prize' in 2014. He paints ev ...

Terry Greene Terry Greene is an artist living and working in West Yorkshire. He received a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Art & Design from Bradford College and a Master of Arts (MA) in Theory of Practice from Leeds Metropolitan University (now Leeds Beckett Univ ...

Susan Gunn Susan Gunn is a British artist. She was born in present-day Greater Manchester, England in 1965, and studied at Norwich University of the Arts where she was awarded a First Class BA Honours in Fine Art Painting in 2004. In 2006 she was awarded t ...

Susie Hamilton Susie Hamilton (born 10 August 1950) is an English artist. She lives and works in London and is represented by Paul Stolper Gallery. Early life and education Hamilton, born 10 August 1950, studied painting at St Martins School of Art and By ...

Alex Hanna Alex Hanna (born 1964) is an English artist. He studied Fine Art at Sunderland Polytechnic from 1983 to 1986. His paintings display arrangements of disposable packaging and objects which have little or no material value. These objects are arrang ...

, Marguerite Horner, Phil Illingworth,

Linda Ingham Linda Ingham (born 1964 in Cleethorpes, England) is a British artist who studied European Humanities before achieving an MA in Fine Art from Lincoln University of Art, Architecture & Design in 2007. A member of the artist led group Contemporary ...

Matthew Krishanu Matthew Krishanu was born in Bradford, England in 1980. He graduated from The University of Exeter with a BA (Hons) in Fine Art and English Literature in 2001 and completed a master's degree in Fine Art at Central Saint Martins, University Col ...

Andrew Litten Andrew Litten is a Cornwall-based English artist born in 1970 in Aylesbury, UK. His paintings have been exhibited in the United Kingdom, including the Tate Modern in London, China, USA, Germany, Australia, Mexico, Poland and Italy. Litten attend ...

Cathy Lomax Cathy Lomax (born 1963) is a London based artist, curator and director of Transition Gallery. She is mainly known for her Figurative art, figurative paintings which often focus on the construction, codification and subversion of femininity and ar ...

, Paula MacArthur, Nicholas Middleton, Stephen Newton, Mandy Payne, Alison Pilkington,

Narbi Price Narbi Price born in Hartlepool, UK, in 1979, is a British painter and curator. Education Price has a Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD) in Fine Art from Newcastle University where he researched the legacy of the Ashington Group painters, he al ...

, James Quin,

Greg Rook Greg Rook (born 1971 in London) is an English painter, known for contemporary figurative paintings capturing the hopes, dreams and successes as well as the disappointments, disillusionment and disasters that radical departures from home life and ...

, Wendy Saunders,

Stephen Snoddy Stephen Snoddy (born 1959) is a British artist and gallery director. Career Snoddy trained as a painter at Belfast College of Art where he graduated in 1983 with an MA in fine art. Snoddy moved to Manchester in 1986 and graduated with a Post ...

Judith Tucker Judith Tucker (1960 – 13 November 2023) was a British artist and academic. She completed a BA in Fine Arts at the Ruskin School of Art, St Anne's College, Oxford, (1978–81) an MA in Fine Arts (1997–98) and a PhD in Fine Arts at the U ...

Mary Webb Mary Gladys Webb (25 March 1881 – 8 October 1927) was an English romance novelist and poet of the early 20th century, whose work is set chiefly in the Shropshire countryside and among Shropshire characters and people whom she knew. Her ...

and Sean Williams.

Selected publications

*Priseman. R. (2017) Contemporary Masters from Britain. *Purdue. F. (2016) Contemporary British Painting Summer Exhibition 2016. *Priseman. R., Cummings. S. & O'Kane. P. (2015) Documentary Realism: Painting in the Digital Age. * *Carter. S. (2014) @paintbritain: 45 Contemporary Painters.

References

External links

Contemporary British Painting
{{DEFAULTSORT:Painting, Contemporary British British artist groups and collectives Arts organisations based in the United Kingdom