Cook was born in the fishing town of Grimsby. He studied painting and sculpture at the local Grimsby School of Art, before moving to Maidstone. There, he was taught by painters William Bowyer, Fred Cuming, and Alex Koolman at Maidstone College of Art. Cook was invited to complete a three-year postgraduate course at the Royal Academy Schools in London, where he was influenced by his tutor, the Keeper of the RA Schools and leading portraitist, Peter Greenham. Encouraged by William Bowyer, Cook applied to the Royal Society of British Artists' annual exhibitions, and his work was selected in 1973 and 1974.[4][5] Cook was then nominated by Bowyer for membership to the society, becoming an associate member in 1975[6] and promoted to a full member in 1976.[7][8] In 1980 Cook was invited to hold a solo exhibition at the RA Schools Galleries.
Cook lives and works in Brighton, East Sussex, with his wife, Christine Cook; they have two daughters, Naomi and Saskia.[9]
Art
″I prefer to work from life, often drawing on the spot, making colour notes in the case of landscape or even very basic watercolour sketches to catch the light, colour and atmosphere.
For oils, I enjoy working on acrylic gesso primed canvas - linen preferably, with a fairly fine tooth. Drawing basic geometry of the composition in charcoal or soft pencil is the first job, after which I strengthen the line with dark umber. I build up the paint, thick and thin, with hog hair and sable, using a cloth for blending. Landscapes can take days or weeks depending on how much I nag at them. Portraits can take longer because its very important to me and the sitter to get a likeness that pleases us both.″ — Richard P. Cook[3]
Selected exhibitions
Solo
1980 — Richard Cook RBA: Paintings, Drawings and Watercolours, Royal Academy Schools' Gallery, Royal Academy of Arts, London
^ a b"Richard Peter Cook | Artist | Royal Academy of Arts". Royal Academy of Arts. Archived from the original on 29 March 2024. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
^ a b"The Royal Society of British Artists | Richard P Cook RBA". Royal Society of British Artists. Archived from the original on 29 March 2024. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
^ a b"Richard P Cook RBA | Mall Galleries". Mall Galleries. Archived from the original on 29 March 2024. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
^"Index | The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition: A Chronicle, 1769–2018". The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition: A Chronicle, 1769–2018. Archived from the original on 29 March 2024. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
^Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition (The 209th). London: Royal Academy of Arts. 1977. p. 44.
^"Winners: Award Winning Artists 2020-2022 by Mall Galleries - Issuu". Issuu. Mall Galleries. 11 July 2022. Archived from the original on 9 May 2024. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
^"RBA Online Exhibition | Richard P. Cook | Royal Over-Seas League (ROSL)". Royal Over-Seas League. Archived from the original on 20 September 2021.
^"Records of the Reynolds Club | Archives | RA Collection | Royal Academy of Arts". Royal Academy of Arts. Archived from the original on 27 April 2024. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
^"Dame Beryl Paston Brown (1909–1997), Principal of Homerton College (1961–1971) | Art UK". Art UK. Archived from the original on 9 May 2024. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
^"Jean Holm | Art UK". Art UK. Archived from the original on 9 May 2024. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
^"View from the Studio | Art UK". Art UK. Archived from the original on 9 May 2024. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
External links
3 artworks by or after Richard P. Cook at the Art UK site