Richard A. Kirk | Visual Artist | Author
"there is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion" Sir Frances Bacon, Of Beauty, Essays" 1625
There are 120,000 + species of flies in the world. Flies have many associations, some darker than others. One of the more positive associations is that of persistence, which seems apt in the context of this stippled piece. I started this drawing on November 1, 2025 and expect that it will take much of the... Continue Reading →
I've been working in graphite for the last couple of weeks, playing with line and values. Graphite is wonderfully suited to working out visual ideas without distraction. These two pieces are quite small, but incorporate a lot of detail. The end result is not unlike my silverpoint work, probably due to my use of a... Continue Reading →
October has finally arrived and I have been in the studio working on a number of new pieces for upcoming shows and book projects. My most recent work is called For I Would Ride with You Upon the Wind. The piece is now available in an online show presented by Inverarity Gallery called “Monochrome: Goddess.”... Continue Reading →
To Wander Where I Will, 2025, ink on paper, 24" x 18" Lately, I've become fascinated by fragmentary Greek masks such as the one above. I need to do more research on them, but on an emotional level, I truly love their mysterious, incomplete quality. This sensibility was the inspiration for my latest piece, a... Continue Reading →
I usually document my work with my iPhone as I progress. I thought I would share some production shots of “Otolith. I like to begin with a graphite line drawing, where the composition is worked out fully before inking. With this piece, I was most interested in the accuracy of carp skull and introducing movement... Continue Reading →
This is the third winter for the cardinal nest in the bush outside my studio window. It has remained intact through many storms and has at various times been a hang for chipmunks and mice. Earlier today I saw 3 bald eagles flying over the river near my house through the snow and mist. Birds... Continue Reading →
The title of my new piece was taken from Mary Shelley's introduction to the 1831 edition of Frankenstein. I saw the pale student of unhallowed arts kneeling beside the thing he had put together. I saw the hideous phantasm of a man stretched out, and then, on the working of some terrible engine, show signs... Continue Reading →
The Stranger Greets the Dawn, 2023, ink on artboard, 10" x 11.5" I finished this drawing on September 10. It started life as an endpaper illustration for a forthcoming book project. In the end we chose another image, so I expanded the this original drawing and rounded out the composition. It is very much in-line... Continue Reading →
Dance of Spring, 2023, graphite on paper, 10" x 10" A small drawing completed a few days ago. Where I am in Ontario, Spring has been slow in coming and the sky has been very grey. With luck, the sun will soon come from behind the clouds and things will warm up. Regardless, things are... Continue Reading →
The Other Earth, 2023, ink on paper, 14” x 18” Earlier this year I was honored to get this special commission from a long time collector and friend, which I can now show you in its entirety. The theme of the piece is that of father and son—exploring your imagination and sharing the journey with... Continue Reading →
Richard A. Kirk | Visual Artist | Author 