ABOUT
Alastair Adams has been painting portraits since the mid 1990’s over which time he has established a strong reputation and career as a commissioned portrait artist.
His natural and unassuming approach to portraiture has earned him many high-profile commissions and a place in national and international collections including those of Cambridge and Oxford University, Princeton, Yale, the Commonwealth Secretariat and several Royal Societies. In 2013 Alastair was approached by the National Portrait Gallery to paint a portrait of three terms Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair for their Primary Collection.
After becoming a member of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters (RP) in 2002, Alastair became the Society’s Treasurer in 2005 and in 2008 was made President, the youngest in the Society’s 120-year history.
In his capacity as President, he continued to build upon the Society's history and strong reputation as a source for high quality, original and inventive world-leading portraiture. In this position he was keen to promote a more diverse understanding of portraiture, artistic practice and its impact on society through collaborations with the National Portrait Gallery, the Changing Faces Foundation and the Understanding British Portraits network. In 2022 Alastair returned to the role of Treasurer, working with the Society to help maintain a platform for the encouragement and support of contemporary figurative portrait painters.
During this time Alastair held a research based lecturing position at Loughborough University, publishing papers on commissioned portraiture, the study of life drawing within a modern educational context, drawing and visualisation and facial difference. He was Programme Director for the Graphic Communication and Illustration Degree Course and also co-Director of the contemporary drawing research group and journal, TRACEY.
In addition to academic conference presentations, Alastair has also given guest lectures for the Royal Society of Medicine, the Senior Physicians Society, the Understanding British Portraiture Network, Heatherley’s School of Art and Berkeley College, Yale. He is currently contributing to a portrait-based research project lead by the Royal Society of Psychiatrists.
At the core of Alastair’s portraiture is an incisive, observationally centred, drawing and painting language. His ability to not only capture a likeness but also the look and manner of his subjects has enabled him to earn the friendship and favour of many institutions and individuals in the UK, Europe and North America.
Alastair is currently a Trustee of the Federation of British Artists and has acted as an external examiner for the Art Academy and the Heatherley’s School of Art. In 2022 he was made an Associate Fellow of Berkeley College, Yale.
There is a password protected downloadable brochure available via the website, please use the contact form at the bottom of the HOME page or send an email for more information.
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BACKGROUND IMAGE
ⓒ BILL KNIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY
His natural and unassuming approach to portraiture has earned him many high-profile commissions and a place in national and international collections including those of Cambridge and Oxford University, Princeton, Yale, the Commonwealth Secretariat and several Royal Societies. In 2013 Alastair was approached by the National Portrait Gallery to paint a portrait of three terms Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair for their Primary Collection.
After becoming a member of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters (RP) in 2002, Alastair became the Society’s Treasurer in 2005 and in 2008 was made President, the youngest in the Society’s 120-year history.
In his capacity as President, he continued to build upon the Society's history and strong reputation as a source for high quality, original and inventive world-leading portraiture. In this position he was keen to promote a more diverse understanding of portraiture, artistic practice and its impact on society through collaborations with the National Portrait Gallery, the Changing Faces Foundation and the Understanding British Portraits network. In 2022 Alastair returned to the role of Treasurer, working with the Society to help maintain a platform for the encouragement and support of contemporary figurative portrait painters.
During this time Alastair held a research based lecturing position at Loughborough University, publishing papers on commissioned portraiture, the study of life drawing within a modern educational context, drawing and visualisation and facial difference. He was Programme Director for the Graphic Communication and Illustration Degree Course and also co-Director of the contemporary drawing research group and journal, TRACEY.
In addition to academic conference presentations, Alastair has also given guest lectures for the Royal Society of Medicine, the Senior Physicians Society, the Understanding British Portraiture Network, Heatherley’s School of Art and Berkeley College, Yale. He is currently contributing to a portrait-based research project lead by the Royal Society of Psychiatrists.
At the core of Alastair’s portraiture is an incisive, observationally centred, drawing and painting language. His ability to not only capture a likeness but also the look and manner of his subjects has enabled him to earn the friendship and favour of many institutions and individuals in the UK, Europe and North America.
Alastair is currently a Trustee of the Federation of British Artists and has acted as an external examiner for the Art Academy and the Heatherley’s School of Art. In 2022 he was made an Associate Fellow of Berkeley College, Yale.
There is a password protected downloadable brochure available via the website, please use the contact form at the bottom of the HOME page or send an email for more information.
----------------------------------
BACKGROUND IMAGE
ⓒ BILL KNIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY
