Williamson Art Gallery is launching a brand new Artist In Residence programme, welcoming artist Steve des Landes to a new studio within the gallery.

New for 2025, the Artist In Residence initiative aims to bring visitors closer to the artistic process. Over the course of the year the public will have the opportunity to observe des Landes working from his studio within the gallery, and find out more about the process through regular engagement sessions, which will offer the opportunity to speak to the artist.

Asked about what he’s looking forward to most about the year, des Landes says “I am looking forward to the opportunity to work within the Williamson. This experience potentially gives me the chance to create a change to my daily routine, disrupting my existing approach and process.

“I intend to focus on ideas for paintings that demand a larger scale, to take full advantage of the much larger working environment. During the year-long residency I would like to create a studio environment that reflects a experimental and playful space, where my ideas can develop through public interaction and engagement.”

Steve des Landes paints people and landscapes filled with angst, uncertainty, anguish and hope; he reveals romance and disappointment; opportunity and failure; fear and fable. His people seem to be preoccupied; life seems to be elsewhere. He previously had a solo exhibition ‘Unsettled’ at the Williamson in 2018.

Des Landes is represented by David Messum Fine Art. For over 60 years, David Messum has been an active influence in the British art market, known for its pioneering research and promotion of British artists.

Steve des Landes’s residency at Williamson Art Gallery will begin in February 2025 and continue until December 20^th.

More information about Steve des Landes and Messum’s can be found on messums.com.