Ken Howard, OBE, RA

British 1932 – 2022

Ken Howard was born in London in 1932. He studied at the Hornsey College of Art (1949–53) and the Royal College of Art (1955–58), before winning a British Council Scholarship to Florence in 1958. Between 1953 and 1955, he completed his National Service in the Royal Marines. He was appointed Official War Artist to Northern Ireland in 1973 and 1978; between 1973 and 1980, he also worked with the British Army in various locations, including Hong Kong, Cyprus, and Canada. Howard was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy (ARA) in 1983 and a full Royal Academician (RA) in 1991. Additionally, he became President of the New English Art Club in 1988.

He paints in a “traditional” manner, based on strong observation and a high degree of draughtsmanship combined with tonal precision. The depiction of light is a strong and recurrent element of his work. A notable theme is the nude model in his studio. Another theme is a city scene, such as Venice, with emphasis placed on the reflection of light from puddles after rain.

He has said:
“I was brought up in London surrounded by railway yards and factories. This has very much influenced the use of horizontal and vertical structures and lines in my work. I am not a landscape painter, but rather a vertical horizontal and linear painter, which is why I have a passion for the lines that occur within my studios, and include them in my paintings. When I study a model, I think of that figure not in rhythmical terms, but in vertical or horizontal positions and planes.”

His work is in public collections including the National Army Museum, Guildhall Art Gallery, Ulster Museum and Imperial War Museum. In 1989, his work was exhibited in Tenterden jointly with Ernest Greenwood and John Stanton Ward.

Howard was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2010 Birthday Honours.

Howard has won various prizes including:
1996 Lord Mayor’s Art Award (First Prize),
1986 NEAC Centenary Award,
1985 Critics Prize at Sparkasse Karlsruhe,
1983 RWA,
1982 Hunting Group Awards (First Prize),
1979 John Laing Competition,
1978 John Moores Exhibition in Liverpool,

Associations
New English Art Club President (1998),
Royal Academy Royal Academician (1991),
Royal Society of British Artists Honorary Member (1988),
Royal West of England Academy (1981),
Royal Society of Painters in Watercolours (1979),
Royal Institute of Oil Painters (1966),
New English Art Club (1962)