Artist

Steven Cooper

Born in 1970, Steven has always lived and worked in and around Manchester. Having held a lifelong interest in art, he chose to make a more serious commitment to painting in 2006, and has endeavoured ever since to make this his full time vocation. Inspired by artists including Francis Bacon, Lucien Freud and Modigliani, Steven has also been working as a tattoo artist for the past year, undertaking original commissions and working from a local studio.

Steven thrives upon the challenge of portraiture and although he has produced work in various media he now works predominantly in oil, both on board and on canvas. In 2006 and 2007, the artist had work accepted into the open exhibition at Stockport Art Gallery, and last year a collection of his work was displayed at the Gallery’s Art Link. This taste of exhibiting within a professional arena has allowed Steven to focus on art as a career, and Mooch art is proud to show this collection of new work.

“As a self-taught artist, faces in their natural states hold a special interest for me. I like faces that hold character and tell something of the person’s story – their history and background. I frequently use a cropping technique wherein I focus on the detail of specific facial features. I find the question of how much of a face has to be revealed in order for the emotion of the subject to be expressed a real challenge to capture in oil. I apply the oil paint thickly to give depth and texture – to me a painting should look like a painting and not like a photograph.”

“I like to see the brush marks – it’s like tracking the painter’s thoughts as the piece is developed.”

Steven is happy to undertake portraits by commission. Please contact the gallery to discuss this further.

Related to: figurative, dramatic, contrasting, portrait, cool, classic, love

Live Manchester - May 2010