About
Liz Foster is a graduate of the Glasgow School of Art’s Painting Department, where she studied in the 90’s under artists such as Jimmy Robertson and Barbara Rae. During her time there she was awarded the Exchange Scholarship to study at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Later, she went on to study for an M.A. in Fine Art at the University of Hull.
Her work currently focuses on painting (in particular the use of colour), but also incorporates media such as stitch and print. She has exhibited nationally in group and solo shows and has work in both public and private collections. In 2021 she had a painting selected for the Royal Academy’s Summer Exhibition. Liz is an advocate for accessible arts education, leading community-based projects and teaching Fine Art in both college and community settings.
Liz is currently based in York, U.K.
Training
1990-1994, Glasgow School of Art, B.A. (hons), Drawing and Painting
1993, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Student Exchange Scholarship
2022-2004, The University of Hull, M.A. Painting
Statement
Currently my work explores notions of repetition and pattern, creating systems and rhythms that reference the natural, human-made and auditory environment. From threads in cloth to lamp posts punctuating a street. Referencing Gestalt, I create compositions from the reiteration of smaller parts, prompting the viewer to ‘join the dots’.
I’ve always enjoyed the play between pure abstraction and subtle references and suggestion. A painting begins with intuitive marks and colour then is developed over several months with the adding, removing, and editing of worked areas. The final composition only comes to realization in the later stages of the process. Impactful use of colour remains a constant in my work. I’m constantly examining how our perception of colours change within a painting depending on where they’re placed.
Upcoming Exhibitions 2022
Ferens Open, Ferens Art Gallery, Hull – Feb 19th – May 2nd
Colour, Fronteer Gallery, Sheffield – Feb 9th – March 18th
Selected Exhibitions
2021 The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, The Royal Academy, London
2021 The Edit, One Good Gift, Sheffield
2021 Towards the Light, The Art Cafe Contemporary Gallery, Whitby
2021 Re-Cultivate, Cultivate Gallery, London (online)
2020 New Light ‘Curator’s Choice’, Scarborough Art Gallery, Scarborough
2019 Ferens Open, Ferens Art Gallery, Hull
2019 YOS Exhibition, St Mary’s Arts Centre, York
2017 Spring Exhibition, The Art Café, Whitby
2009 Summer Show, The Art Café, Whitby
2008 magical/mystical/nature, Friar Lane Gallery, Nottingham
2007 Flower, Beningbrough Hall, York (solo)
2007 Miscellany, Beningbrough Hall, York (solo)
2006 Taste, 20-21 Visual Arts Centre, Scunthorpe (solo)
2006 Multiplicity, Kirkleatham Museum and Art Gallery, Redcar
2005 Gallery Show, Blue Wing Gallery, Padstow, Cornwall
2004 Painting is Dead, Long Live Painting, Hastings Museum & Art Gallery
2004 Women’s Work, Artlink Gallery, Hull
2003 Unframed, Cupola Art Gallery, Sheffield
1999 New Paintings, Air Gallery, London (solo)
1998 Paintings, Taunton School, Somerset (solo)
1997 York Open, York City Art Gallery, York
1995 6×6, University of Northumbria, Newcastle
1994 New Generation, The Compass Gallery, Glasgow
1994 Paths of Exploration, The Assembly Rooms, Glasgow
1993 R.S.A. Student Exhibition, Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh
Art Fairs
2021 art&York online
2019 art&York
2008 London Art Fair (Represented by Beverley Knowles Fine Art)
Open Studios
York Open Studios -2019, 2017
East Yorkshire Open Studios, 2014