Michael Alford (artist)
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Rugby School
Michael Robert Patrick Alford | |
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| Born | September 15, 1958 Cookham, Berkshire, England |
| Education | Dragon School Rugby School |
| Alma mater | Durham University Slade School of Art Chelsea School of Art |
| Known for | Figurative painting (landscapes, cityscapes, figures, portraits, nudes, murals) |
| Notable work | Patrol at Pan Kalay Police Station (acquired by the National Army Museum) |
| Style | Figurative |
| Awards | ROI Stanley Grimm Prize – Michael Robert Patrick Alford 2016 Agnes Reeve Memorial Prize – Michael Robert Patrick Alford 2003 Third Place Prize |
Michael Robert Patrick Alford (born 15 September 1958, in Cookham, Berkshire, England) is a British figurative painter whose work includes landscapes, cityscapes, figures, portraits, nudes and murals.[1]
Alford was born in Cookham, England, and grew up in England and Germany. He attended the Dragon School and later Rugby School. His first art training came from his father, an officer in the Royal Engineers, who taught him how to draw in perspective at an early age. After a period in the Royal Marines, he attended Durham University (St John's College), where he took a degree in Spanish and Arabic.[2][3] Later he traveled extensively in South America and the Middle East, documenting his trips in a series of detailed sketchbooks. He received further art training at the Slade and Chelsea schools of art before beginning his career as a muralist and fine arts painter, exhibiting widely in the UK, the US and Europe. Michael Alford lives in London but travels widely seeking new subjects.
In his twenties, Alford began painting large-scale murals and trompe l’oeil works, which he has described as his most thorough introduction to the practicalities of painting as distinct from drawing.[4]
Alford is particularly noted for his cityscapes, especially of London. He is interested in the changing nature of urban spaces and in the visual juxtapositions of classical, medieval, and modern architecture.[4]
