I intend to produce a multi-stage socially engaged art research project that explores hidden spaces and overlooked moments throughout Darlington. Using exploratory colour and mark-making influenced by post-impressionist approaches, I want to highlight how the aesthetic of the everyday can become a site for artistic reflection. The bursary would allow me to dedicate focused time for research and making, and support the delivery of a public engagement programme that builds on my existing body of work.
Over the past two years, my practice has centred on urban portraiture and candid scenes that explore the relationship between individual identity and the collective. This project shifts the focus to quieter aspects of daily life: misplaced objects, unusual architectural details, and fleeting interactions. It would culminate in at least one public exhibition and a digitally accessible counterpart that acts as a long-term legacy.
Building on recent work in oil pastel inspired by Bologna, I want to explore how expressive use of colour can bring drama and presence to unassuming subjects. These studies will inform new paintings and prints. I also aim to deliver a series of free workshops with local people, where we exchange knowledge and draw inspiration from the surrounding environment. Participants would help guide the direction of the research, acting as both collaborators and local guides.
This conversation between artist and community is at the core of the project. Where appropriate, I would seek to collaborate with local cultural organisations, including the Darlington Hippodrome, where I have previously worked alongside artist Sarah Li.
This opportunity comes at a pivotal point in my career. Following a solo exhibition, multiple group shows, and an artist residency, I am now developing a more community-focused strand to my practice. Alongside several years of teaching adults in drawing and painting, I am looking to build stronger links across the North East. This project would support my development as an artist who places everyday life, people, and places at the centre of their work.
My project would support Darlington’s creative scene by increasing opportunities for local people to develop artistic skills and engage with visual art in an accessible way. The drawing sessions I plan to offer will focus on the everyday, encouraging participants to explore their own surroundings and find creative value in familiar spaces. This opens up space for people who might not usually access contemporary art to take part and see it as something relevant to them.
Through this approach, I hope to encourage a deeper connection between place, people, and creative practice. The sessions will contribute directly to the development of my own work, which will be shaped by local perspectives and experiences. The final outcomes will be shared publicly in both physical and digital form, with the digital exhibition acting as a documentation of the project and a resource for others in the future.
This work reflects my wider interest in the role of art within everyday life, and my commitment to supporting creativity within the North East. By rooting this project in Darlington, it offers a way to celebrate the town’s people and culture through shared artistic exploration.
am an artist, curator, and cultural freelancer based in Newcastle. I have worked in the cultural sector for eight years and independently as an artist and freelancer since 2020. My practice centres on oil painting and oil pastel, with a focus on portraiture often caught candidly in public spaces. I started my current artistic research in early 2024 with expressive urban portraiture based on found images from holiday photos. This quickly developed into an exploration of colour and graphic outlines as a way of drawing attention to hidden narratives and subjects within these paintings In summer 2024, I held my first solo exhibition, ‘Like Ships in the Night’, which brought together intimate solo portraits and crowded street scenes. The exhibition examined the relationship between the individual and the crowd through differing levels of anonymity and visibility. Following this, my research shifted to a broader interest in narratives of the public space as I incorporated elements of linocut and drypoint into my regular practice, using printmaking methods to push the graphic qualities of my work. In 2025, three of my works were selected for the Macfarlanes and Clyde & Co Art Prizes, and four were selected for the Jackson’s Art Prize extended shortlist. Following a trip to Bologna, my creative process shifted slightly, as I identified an interest in hidden urban narratives initially inspired by architectural ornamentation and in-person encounters. From this, I began to incorporate more oil pastel sketches into my daily work. I am now exploring how I can translate the mark making and colour usage of my oil pastel sketches into my oil painting and printmaking practices and what effects this has on the narrative of the piece. I am currently working towards my second solo exhibition, due to take place in March 2026. Alongside my own practice, I teach weekly art classes for adult learners, covering life drawing, oil painting, portraiture, and printmaking. Teaching has become an important part of how I share and exchange knowledge, and it also plays a role in informing my practice through ongoing dialogue with others.
I hold a BA (Hons) in Fine Art from the University of Sunderland and an MA in Art Museum and Gallery Studies from Newcastle University. I have continued my art education through a range of short courses, including Modern and Contemporary Art History at Central Saint Martins, a 10-week course exploring contemporary portraiture at the Art Academy London, and a 5-week printmaking course at the University of Edinburgh.
I regularly take part in skills development programmes, attending at least one course per year to address gaps in my knowledge, expand my practice, and explore new creative directions. This ongoing learning is an important part of how I develop as an artist.
In September 2019, I was awarded the Creative Development Fellowship by Sunderland Culture, which supported my curatorial practice and directly contributed to the founding of Art Matters Now (AMN).
In 2020, I received the NECVAN Creative Space Residency Award as co-founder of AMN. This supported my early research into digital engagement during the pandemic, particularly how online platforms could be used to explore and communicate social issues. With this support, I began learning 3D modelling in Blender and applied it to a series of experimental digital exhibitions. This broadened my practice and laid the foundation for future exploration in both physical and digital forms of artistic engagement.
Later that year, I was also awarded the Santander Enterprise Fund by the University of Sunderland, which enabled me to purchase equipment to support the digital side of my practice.
In 2021, I received the Broadside Covid-19 Recovery Residency from Broadside Creatives CIC. This provided nine-month access to a studio in Sunderland, alongside a bursary to further explore and develop my practice.
In 2022, I was awarded the CLLD Creative Industries Grant from Sunderland Culture, which allowed me to undertake short courses in art history and address key gaps in my theoretical knowledge.
In March 2020, I co-founded Art Matters Now (AMN), a curatorial initiative using digital tools to connect artists and audiences in meaningful conversations around social issues. It began with me independently producing three public exhibitions at the Athenaeum building in Sunderland between 2020 and 2021. Across these, I worked with seven local artists and created interactive digital exhibitions to extend access and engagement beyond the physical space.
Following this, I was commissioned by cultural organisations and artists to support the creation of digitally accessible content. This included digital archiving, exhibition documentation, and participatory online projects designed to broaden reach and improve accessibility.
In 2021, I launched a weekly life drawing class for adult learners at The Customs House in South Shields, combining my own interest in figure drawing with a wider commitment to community-driven art engagement. Since then, my teaching has expanded to include portraiture, printmaking, and oil painting. I’ve also delivered school sessions, including at DCHS in Alnwick, and a guest lecture at Newcastle University. Most recently, I was invited to teach regular classes at Newcastle Arts Centre.
These self-initiated projects have helped shape a sustainable, community-focused practice grounded in creative collaboration and public engagement.
Since October 2024, I have been Artist in Residence for Bede Ward, supported by The Cultural Spring. This role focuses on engaging communities in Jarrow and Bede, identified as ‘left behind’ areas, by increasing access to art and culture through free creative opportunities.
As part of the residency, I’ve designed and delivered a wide range of public workshops for residents of all ages, including sessions in printmaking, glass painting, and clay. These workshops are designed to be approachable, skill-building, and responsive to the interests of the participants, many of whom are engaging with art for the first time.
In addition to workshops, I’ve organised cultural visits that connect local residents to wider creative experiences across the region. I have also produced and installed a bespoke solo exhibition in a local pub, made up of oil paintings depicting regulars and familiar scenes, captured from candid references. This aimed to celebrate the local community and demonstrate how everyday moments and people can be seen as worthy of artistic attention.
The residency has allowed me to develop my community-driven creative practice while working directly with people to co-create cultural experiences rooted in place, identity, and daily life.
Email: rdowilliams@outlook.com
Address: 18L Clayton Street West, Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, NE1 5BU, GB
Local Authority: Newcastle
