Body and Soul by Richard Blunt

Born in Stourbridge in the West Midlands, Richard Blunt had a happy childhood and his favourite place to be was outside. If he was ever inside he loved to be creative, especially with art.

History and Background

Straight from school Richard went to art college to study 3D design, and although he enjoyed the course, he left without a qualification.

Richard recalls the next few years as going from bad to worse and he entered his twenties in a strange town, homeless, friendless with his only possessions carried in the pockets of his coat. It was at this point that he started to rediscover his creative side and spent the next few years playing guitar in various bands before returning to education.

Despite choosing to study music at university, Richard began painting again, and was inspired to use oils for the first time. He became instantly hooked.

Since then he has sold his work in independent galleries and privately, while developing the style and technique that he has today.

Ideas and Inspirations

Richard has always been inspired by artists such as Vermeer, John William Waterhouse and in particular Caravaggio. He admires not only the way they painted with a dramatic use of light and realism, but how they managed to make their paintings look like a scene straight out of a modern movie.

Richard aims to tell a story or create mystery in each of his pieces. He feels that while a film can do this easily, his challenge as an artist is to capture a similar feeling in just the snap shot of a single image, and this is what he strives for.

More often than not he is also inspired by his own experiences. As with most artists, as his life changes, so does his work. Gradually evolving from his earlier compositions, themes of love and happiness have started to emerge in his paintings.