Richard Thorn was born in the South West of England in 1952. He was brought up living close to the sea and among the beautiful Devon countryside. As a result the sea, coastal and rural landscape have been an ongoing inspiration of subject matter for Richard. Although he formally studied art at the Newton Abbot School of Art, Thorn is a naturally gifted artist and prefers to create paintings from 'feeling' rather than an academic standpoint.
Richard Thorn started painting professionally in the 1980's. Since then he has produced many fine paintings and limited edition prints of the commanding Devon and Cornish landscapes and coastline. The South West has a 'quality of light' that attracts many British artists and Richard Thorn is no exception. He is drawn to the intensely bright and suffuse light, together with the many variations in the coastal and inland landscape of the area. In his paintings Richard Thorn successfully captures the expansive and beautiful South West landscape and the sea which continue to have an ongoing effect on him.
Historically Richard Thorn's paintings have been watercolours. The reasons for watercolour are unclear but he was never-the-less attracted to the medium because it retained the drawing and sketching elements that were so intrinsic in his very British art. More recently Richard has been producing art works in acrylic with equal success. Early influences on Richard Thorn art works were artists Winslow Homer, Andrew Wyeth, Edward Hopper and Philip Jameson. His strong distinctive style and his penchant for light are increasingly appreciated by UK art collectors and by those further afield.
Richard Thorn creates art works using dramatic splashes of tone and colour. His paintings are very atmospheric capturing the warmth of the summer's sun; the autumnal feel of the changing season; the crispness and magic of winter set against the majesty of the ocean and landscape. Talking about his art works Thorn says: "I love the poetry of the land and the sea. The associations are strong and deep and I try to convey this in my work".
