2012
Richard Combes creates remarkably lifelike oil paintings that explore the relationship between vacant spaces and the solitary people who fleetingly occupy them.
Decaying inner-city building interiors, rain-soaked streets and solemn storefronts are the subjects of choice for the British artist’s award-winning realist work. Combes’s carefully rendered depictions are a love letter to disused spaces that time and the elements have left bedraggled and dilapidated. He has cited Impressionist and Surrealist art as having been influential for him, and his background as an architect provides him with a keen insight into the themes he explores in his work.
Combes was born in Manchester. He graduated from the architecture program at the University of Liverpool and immediately secured work in his field of study. Combes eventually felt dissatisfied with his career choice, as he began to notice that he was more interested in sketching the neglected and largely vacant spaces than finishing his architectural renderings that would form their replacement. Combes made a change — he moved to New York City and earned his MFA at the New York Academy of Art.
Combes was elected as a full member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters in 2004. His work has earned international acclaim and a lengthy list of prizes and awards. Combes’s paintings have been exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery, and his work is in the private collections of many celebrities and prominent figures.
On 1stDibs, find original Richard Combes landscape paintings, still-life paintings and other art.
SPACE FOR RENT - Realism / Empty Room with tiled floors and white walls
By Richard Combes
Located in New York, NY
A British-born, American based painter, Richard Combes focuses his subjects on the forgotten corners of New York City, subway stations, the cobblestone streets with puddles in Tribec...
Canvas, Oil
THE OLD SINK, NYC - Basement Interior / Tiles and Pattern / Realism / Rustic
By Richard Combes
Located in New York, NY
A British-born, American based painter, Richard Combes focuses his subjects on the forgotten corners of New York City, subway stations, the cobblestone s...
Canvas, Oil
THE KITCHEN, NYC - Interior / Tiles / Pattern / Realism / Sink / Rustic
By Richard Combes
Located in New York, NY
A British-born, American based painter, Richard Combes focuses his subjects on the forgotten corners of New York City, subway stations, the cobblestone streets with puddles in Tribec...
Canvas, Oil
CENTER POINT - Photorealism / Exposed Red Brick Wall / Contrast
By Richard Combes
Located in New York, NY
A British-born, American based painter, Richard Combes focuses his subjects on the forgotten corners of New York City, subway stations, the cobblestone streets with puddles in Tribec...
Canvas, Oil
COMMUNICATION, NYC - Elevator / Interior / Male Figure / Old Building / New York
By Richard Combes
Located in New York, NY
A British-born, American based painter, Richard Combes focuses his subjects on the forgotten corners of New York City, subway stations, the cobblestone streets with puddles in Tribec...
Canvas, Oil
DOWNTOWN PLATFORM FRANKLIN ST. SUBWAY - Photorealism / NYC Train Station
By Richard Combes
Located in New York, NY
Richard Combes (b. 1963, Manchester, England) trained as an architect in the UK before moving to New York City. In 1995, he completed his MA in Painting at the New York Academy of Ar...
Canvas, Oil
Studio Corner and Floor - Contemporary Interior Painting Artist's Studio, 2018
By Brett Eberhardt
Located in Kent, CT
In this interior painting, the corner of a bathroom is slightly visible through the doorway along a white wall in an artist's quiet studio space. The warmth of the worn, paint splatt...
Oil, Panel
Grounded, Oil Painting
By David Thelen
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Shelves, drawers, and scattered objects fill an industrial room. A tall door stands open at the center, allowing natural light to spill into the interior. Thick...
Oil
Interior 1
By Daniela Gullotta
Located in Milano, MI
Urbex is the English acronym for urban exploration and is an activity that consists of searching for and locating abandoned infrastructure with the goal of visiting, photographing an...
Sandstone
Abandoned Vision
By Maggie Evans
Located in New Orleans, LA
[b. 1980 – Denton, TX ::: lives & works – Savannah, GA] MAGGIE EVANS is an artist based in Savannah, Georgia. She currently uses painting, drawing and installation to examine huma...
Canvas, Oil
Reflection by Gina Soden - Photography, interior of abandoned building, manor
By Gina Soden
Located in Paris, FR
Reflection is a limited-edition photograph by British contemporary artist Gina Soden. This photograph is sold unframed as a print only. It is available in 2 dimensions: *80.2 × 80.2...
Giclée
Broken Easel, Oil Painting
By David Thelen
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Artist David Thelen's serene exploration of space and form captures the quiet elegance of a modern setting. With clean lines, soft tones, and a carefully balanc...
Oil
