In a lowly lit room with a high and imposing beamed ceiling, shafts of light fall gracefully over the works of art. Out of the enfolding darkness and into the light, intricate brushstrokes and hidden textures are revealed- the figures breathe into life on their canvases.
Winter Branch
Oil on canvas
65 x 65 cm
2018
There is a highly charged atmosphere, excitement and intrigue surround an exclusive collection of paintings by talented artist Richard Greathouse. This is the first event of the season at The Florence Academy of Art in Florence, Italy.
The Florence Academy of Art
The Florence Academy of Art
The Florence Academy of Art
The Florence Academy of Art
People surround the images, pressing their noses up against them, turning this way and that to catch the light dancing on their surfaces, illuminating soft living skintone and the glint of an eye.
Portrait of Marty
Oil on panel
35 x 30 cm
2017
Viewers return again and again, knowing that with each glance, the paintings have more to give. Their layers unfold in front of searching eyes, whole worlds cascade from each portrait. A life being lived is captured in a stolen moment - reverberating for all time.
The Florence Academy of Art
La Giovane Dottoressa
Oil on canvas
55 x 50 cm
2018
Layer upon layer of philosophy weave into the theme of this exhibition; the wonders of an earthly existence, the transience of the moment upon moment unfolding of our lives, bloom and decay, birth and death. All are as present in the artworks as they are present in Richard’s work-state of mind,
‘As the universe swells, and reaches towards it inevitable heat death, there are moments both small and large that seem to counteract this entropic demise. In the stellar nurseries we have witnessed the rebirth of the stars. As our own planet turns we have seen the breath of the seasons, waxing and waning. And in our own lives, we feel the bloom and decay of life pass through us. I am fascinated by these moments of ectropy, and its ebbs against the flow of entropy. We see this also in the creative act: the alchemy of reorganizing matter so that the original elements add up to more than they were seperately. And perhaps all this act accomplishes is grouping these elements so that they can decay together, in a way our consciousness can more deeply appreciate. It could be that our consciousness is no different, an ephemeral and therefore poignant grouping of elements, an ebb of creation, that will someday flow back into nothingness. What a wonderful and strange existence’.
RICHARD GREATHOUSE
Richard Greathouse is a classically trained American artist, re-imagining history for a contemporary context. He is a native of Nashville and lives and paints in Italy where he is Director of Anatomy and Principal Instructor in intermediate painting at the Florence Academy of Art, from which he graduated in 2011.
Self Portrait
Oil on panel
30 x 25
2017
In an interview with Nashville Arts Magazine ( nashvillearts.com ) the artist explained:
“The human form, in both its familiarity and variety, provides a priceless tool for artists to build an expressive vocabulary in their work. Good painting and sculpting come from a foundation in drawing, and good drawing is rooted in careful and sustained observation of nature, tempered with an eye for the subject’s character. The goal is to create something at once true to nature and true also to the artist’s experience”.
Male Figure Study
Oil on canvas
50 x 40 cm
2017
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Images
All close-up images of artworks are courtesy of Richard Greathouse.