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Artist Statement

“Travel, landscape and the built environment provide ongoing inspiration for my paintings.

Drawing on observation, memory and everyday experience, I explore the ways places are shaped by human intervention, from architecture and signage to leisure spaces and structures of display.

Through simplified forms and carefully considered compositions, my work reflects on the relationship between people, place and the environments we create, inviting viewers to consider the familiar in new ways.”

~ Rick Matear

I acknowledge that my practice has been developed on the land of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation whose sovereignty was never ceded. I pay respect to their elders past, present and emerging.

About Rick

Rick has had a strong and successful painting career since the early 1980s. Born in 1960, he graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts in 1981. While at the VCA he was awarded the Sara Levi Prize for the most outstanding student in painting.

He has exhibited in Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra and London. He is particularly known for his ability to capture reflection of light on water and compelling depictions of his beloved Mornington Peninsula. Rick enjoys experimenting with different painting techniques and finding resolutions to the challenges they present.

Rick currently lives and works in Melbourne. His loves are painting, his family, gardening and teaching art. A keen cyclist, he rides to and from work, enjoying the peace and private time that this provides. He has a strong interest in maintaining the unique qualities and historical significance of the Abbotsford Convent precinct, which houses his studio. This inner urban site is nestled alongside a seemingly rural stretch of Melbourne’s Yarra River and hosts a large and diverse community of creatives.

Curriculum Vitae

Education: Graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts in 1981.

Exhibitions: Aegean Designs, Portsea | Australian Galleries, Melbourne | Von Bibra Gallery, Armadale | Alliance Française, St Kilda | Chapman Gallery, Canberra | Libby Edwards Galleries, Armadale | Collins Street Gallery, Melbourne | Hill-Smith Gallery, Adelaide | Catanachs, Melbourne | C3 Contemporary Art Space, Abbortsford Convent | Manyung Gallery, Mt Eliza | Kinross House, Toorak | St Heliers Street Gallery, Sorrento | Metropolis Gallery, Geelong | Manyung Gallery Group

Individual Exhibitions: One to two solo exhibitions per year for the last 25 years at the above galleries.

Selected Group Exhibitions: Many group exhibitions at selected galleries. Affordable Art Fair

Public Collections: Maribyrnong City Council

Commissions: Many Commissions for the past 30 years

Teaching: Private Art Class Tuition, Beginners to Advanced, 1998-current.

Artist-in-Residencies: Turtle Island, Fiji 2000. Antibes 2016. Venice. Grimaud.

Artist Talks: C3 Contemporary Art Space, Abbortsford Convent

Awards: Sara Levi Prize in 1978, Most Outstanding Student in Painting, VCA. Max and Ruth Barry Art Prize, Albury 2006.

Finalist: Maritime Art Prize 2023

Finalist: Lethbridge 20000 Small Scale Art Award 2022

Finalist: John Leslie Art Prize 2020

Finalist: Eutick Memorial Still Life Award 2018

Finalist: Maritime Art Prize 2022

Finalist: Lethbridge Art Prize 2020

Finalist: Len Fox Painting Prize 2019