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
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 →
Otolith, 2025, ink on paper, 14" x 10" I finished "Otolith" yesterday, but inspiration for the piece goes back to childhood memories of collecting fish bones on the shore of Lake Huron. I was, am, drawn to the bones for their interesting shapes. They end up bleaching on window-ledges or lost in various drawers. Over... Continue Reading →
"Secret Affinities" is my first completed drawing of 2025. It tips the hat to a couple of my favourite artists—can you identify them? The idea for this picture came from a small sketch of a witch that I did a few years ago. In this image, I drew her with her with a prominent left... 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 →
My final drawing of the year is "Gatekeeper". This is a companion piece to another drawing I did this year called "Extremophile." Sincere thanks to everyone who has taken the time to look at my art this year and to those that were able to support it with a sale, mention, share or "like." Richard... Continue Reading →
For the past few weeks I have been busy in the studio working on some new pieces. The pictures below are my most recent works and both are available in my Big Cartel webstore. Key Bearer, 2024, silverpoint, 12"x9" Key Bearer is a new silverpoint drawing executed on acid free hotpress illustration board. In this... Continue Reading →
No matter how surreal or fantastic my pieces finish up, they nearly always start with natural forms. No matter how surreal or fantastic my pieces finish up, they nearly always start with natural forms. The shapes of insects, plants, bones, fossils etc. are all building blocks I use to create composition and meaning in my... Continue Reading →
Many of you that follow my work will have seen the images I created earlier this year for the vinyl reissue of KoRN Untitled—KoRn's 8th studio album. In this post I will show you some of the production shots I took while I was working on this project. It's my practice to document my work... 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 →
For highly rendered ink drawings I like to start with a detailed graphite line drawing. This piece started life as a proposed book illustration. If you look carefully, you can see the vertical line that marks the edge of the original drawing. When the editor selected another piece in its place, I finished the drawing... Continue Reading →
Richard A. Kirk | Visual Artist | Author 