Andrew Farmer

British b. 1985

Andrew Farmer was born in 1985 in South Yorkshire, he studied Fine Art Painting at the University of Canterbury Christ Church (2005-2008), followed by ‘The Drawing Year’ at the Royal Drawing school, London (2008-2009).

Painting primarily in oils Farmer tackles a range of subjects including domestic family scenes (Interiors and Garden), landscape, cityscape and portraiture. Farmer produces work which is heavily rooted in observation. Farmer thrives on the act of looking, analysing and trying to understand the world around him.

“I’m a strong believer in tapping in to my locality for inspiration, to the point of permanently setting up my equipment in the garden. In this way I’m always ready to work directly from highly personal family scenes in the warmer months. It also enables me to experiment on a much larger scale than usual.”

Sketchbooks play an important role in Farmer’s creative practice. Drawings serve as a vehicle to solve problems within his paintings, explore new subjects or simply to practice with no end in mind. “I think it’s such an important thing to keep on searching and experimenting and sketchbooks offer me a place to do this, spontaneously and on a variety of scales and formats.”

Family is a vital bloodline to Farmer’s creativity, and he finds great inspiration in his family, in the form of intimate individual portraits and large scale oil paintings of family life around the home and garden. “I love to paint the ordinary, elevating simple subjects that will cause the viewer to take more notice of the many wonderful and beautiful things surrounding us daily.”

Awards

First Prize Winsor and Newton Award for Oil Painting, ROI, 2018

Paint Out Norwich, Judges Commendation, 2018

Second place, ‘Create Longridge’ Art Event, Longridge, Lancashire, 2018

First Place (Best in Show), The New Fringe Open Exhibition, Doncaster Museum and Art Gallery, 2018

Shortlisted for the Haworth Northern Landscape Award, New English Art Club, 2016

Shortlisted for the Contemporary Portrait Portrait Prize, Biscuit Factory, Newcastle 2016

Second Prize, Windsor and Newton Award for Oil Painting, ROI, 2014

Richard Ford Award, Prado Residency, Madrid, The Royal Drawing School, London, 2009

Exhibitions

2018

The Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition

The New English Art Club Annual Exhibition

Create Longridge

The New Fringe Open Exhibition, Doncaster Museum and Art Gallery

Birmigham NEC with Granta Fine Art

Group Show, Reflections, Hornshaw Gallery London

2017

The Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition

The New English Art Club Annual Exhibition

One Man Show, From the Woodland to the Coast, Staithes Studio Gallery

One Man Show, Homeland, Cusworth Hall, Doncaster

2016

The Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition

The Brick Lane Gallery, Group Exhibition with Hornshaw Gallery

The New English Art Club Annual Exhibition

Contemporary Portrait Award, Biscuit Factory Gallery, Newcastle

Two Man Show, Staithes Studio Gallery, Staithes

The Buxton Spa Prize Exhibition

Royal Society of Marine Artists

Art for Youth, North Yorkshire

2015

The Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition

Three Man Show, Chalk Marks, The Art and Rose Gallery, Pocklington

2013

Ruth Borchard Self-Portrait Competition, Kings Place Gallery, York Road, London

Solo Exhibition, Painting in the Park, Cusworth Hall, Doncaster