Philippa Fox (née Davison) (born 1972)
Working from observation, Philippa is concerned with still life, landscape and portraits. She sees still life as her own form of landscape where she can have more selection, both on the palette and with composition.
Working directly onto the canvas rather than from drawings, Philippa enjoys the evolution of a painting, both in material and perceptual terms. Philippa’s work has a traditional quality, yet it displays a vibrancy that keenly intensifies the subject.
Phillipa studied for her BA Hons in Fine Art at Falmouth School of Art between 1991 and 1994; from 1997 to 2000 she took a Postgraduate Diploma in Painting at the Royal Academy Schools, London. Born in Cheshire, she currently lives and works near Cirencester in the Cotswolds.
"It is the objects that surround me that I choose to select for subjects," she says. "Ratios of colour, organic matter and pattern within this are important to me. For each painting, I usually select a combination of organic items (such as fruit or flowers) and crafted or manufactured items (such as wallpaper, china or fabric). For example, the play between a floral fabric, a chintz cup and saucer and a fresh-cut flower intrigues me — likewise looking through glass, or at a reflection, with the extension of colour within these.
"To begin with, I’ll look very closely at the subject in front of me, but as the painting progresses I think less about the subject and concentrate more on light, colour, transparency and translucency. I predominantly work in oils straight onto gesso board as I enjoy the movement of the paint on the board. I’ll work on certain areas, building up a glaze or an area of thicker paint, relishing the contrast between the different layers."
EDUCATION
1997-2000: Royal Academy Schools, Post-graduate Diploma in Painting
1991-94: Falmouth School of Art & Design, BA Honours in Fine Art
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2011: Genty Fine Art ‘A la Folie’, Fitzroy Square
2005: Galerie Genty, Vouvant, France (solo show )
2005: Burlington Fine Art, London
2005: Sheen Gallery, London
2004/5: Russell Gallery, London
2003: 'Discerning Eye Exhibition', London
2001/2: 'Art for Youth', London
2001: 'Artists of Today & Tomorrow', New Grafton Gallery, London,
2001: Rowley Gallery of Contemporary Arts, London
2001: Firbob & Peacock Contemporary Art, Knutsford
2000: The Wiseman Gallery, Oxford
1999: 'The Royal Society of Portrait Painters', Mall Galleries, London
PUBLICATIONS
2001: July — 'In Conversation with Philippa Davison', The Artist
2010: December — 'Philippa Davison, Pratiques des Arts', France
AWARDS
1998-2000: Rio Tinto Scholarship, Royal Academy Schools
1998: Tesco’s 'Bag for Life', celebrating education through to the Millennium
£750 — £5000
