Richard Whiteley

Richard Whiteley was born in England and emigrated to Australia in 1963. He studied a Bachelor of Visual Art at the Canberra School of Art followed by a Master of Fine Art in Sculpture at the University of Illinois, USA. Whiteley has had numerous solo and group exhibitions in Australia, USA, Holland and England. In 2002 he was appointed as Head of the prestigious Glass Workshop at the Canberra School of Art at the Australian National University, Canberra.

Richard Whiteley’s work is part of corporate, public and private collections nationally and internationally including, The Australian Art Trust; Australia National Gallery, Canberra; Lang Walker Fine Art Collection; Art Bank, Australia; Resource Finance Corporation (RFC), National Glass Collection, Wagga Wagga, Queensland Contemporary Art Gallery, Brisbane and the Victorian State Craft Collection, Victoria; The Palm Spring Art Museum, California. USA.

Richard Whiteley’s architecturally inspired large-scale glass works further develop his exploration of the refraction and reflection of light. He has always been interested in the concept of interior space and the idea that his cast glass forms can transform and activate architectural spaces to add a human presence. His three dimensional works are alive in the way that they bend and distort light and objects reflect through them. Their richly coloured silky surfaces are luminous, simultaneously absorbing and reflecting light. Colours often change when viewed from different angles and we witness several colour forms intersecting, creating new physical relationships.