Artist's Statement:

I draw and paint directly from life, both in the studio and outside. Working in this way results in marks that are reactive, and for me, it is the best way to capture what it feels like to be with the subject. I also create much larger studio paintings based on small plein air studies. In these I try to recreate the energy and atmosphere of the smaller work using a more complex layering of the medium.

Biographical Details:

Benjamin took an unconventional route to a career in fine art. As the son of artist Jane Hope, he was introduced to painting at an early age, but he decided against Art School and instead pursued Mathematics and Physics, culminating in a PhD from Cambridge University. After graduating from Cambridge, Benjamin had a spell as a ‘quant’ in the City in order to set up a studio in South East London, and in 2011 he left the City to begin focusing on his art full-time. As well as the Pastel Society, Benjamin is an elected member of the New English Art Club, the Royal Society of Portrait Painters and the Royal Society of Marine Artists.

Society Membership:

The Pastel Society
The New English Art Club
The Royal Society of Marine Artists
The Royal Society of Portrait Painters
The Royal Institute of Oil Painters (Associate)

Scholarships, Awards, Prizes:

2019: The Michael Harding Award, Royal Society of British Artists Exhibition
2018: Frinton Frames Award, Royal Society of British Artists Exhibition
2017: Winsor & Newton Non-member Award, Royal Institute of Oil Painters Exhibition
2016: First Prize in the Jackson's Pastel Portrait Competition
2016: Mall Galleries Greetings Card Award: New English Art Club
2014: Pintar Rapido First Prize (The Pintar Prize)
2014: Jackson's Prize, United Society of Artists Open Exhibition
2014: Runner Up, Lynn Painter Stainers Prize

Exhibitions:
Solo Exhibitions:

2019: Island Fine Arts, Chichester
2015: Observations, JP Art Gallery, London

Joint Exhibitions:

2021: Island Fine Arts, Chichester (Cole, Hope)
2020: Island Fine Arts, Chichester (Hope, Robinson)
2019: Common Ground, Gallery Different, London (Hope, Roberts)
2018: Island Fine Arts, Chichester (Bemis, Hope)
2017: Works, Gallery Different, London (Hooper, Hope)
2017: Island Fine Arts, Isle of Wight (Cole, Hope, Pearce)

Other Exhibitions:
Open Exhibitions:

Pastel Society: 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
Lynn Painter Stainers Prize: 2014, 2017
New English Art Club: 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
Royal Academy Summer Show: 2013
Royal Institute of Oil Painters: 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours: 2017
Royal Society of British Artists: 2014, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
Royal Society of Marine Artists: 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
Royal Society of Miniature Painters, Sculptors & Gravers: 2013
Royal Society of Portrait Painters: 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
Ruth Borchard Self Portrait Competition: 2015, 2019
United Society of Artists: 2014
Pintar Rapido: 2014
Oxford Art Society: 1998, 1999, 2001, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2021
Blackheath Art Society: 2013, 2014

Publications:

Give Oil Pastels a Go!, The Artist, October 2019, p.30
Numbers and Figures, The New English Art Club (online), February 2019
Palette-knife Portraits, The Artist, October 2016, p.37
Plein Air Pastels, The Artist, July 2016, p.23
The Science of Art, Johnian News #37, Michaelmas 2015, p.14
Exhibition catalogues: Observations, 2015; Works, 2017; Capturing the Moment, 2018; Common Ground, 2019