101/EXHIBIT is proud to present new works by Richard Butler. This occasion marks the artist’s first solo showing with the gallery. The exhibition will run from September 16th – October 13th, 2017 with an opening reception on Saturday, September 16th from 7-9pm at 668 North La Peer Drive in West Hollywood.
 

Richard Butler, the self-proclaimed “painter who sings” versus a “singer who paints” (when he is not painting you can find him as the front man of The Psychedelic Furs) will be presenting a new body of work for his first solo exhibition at 101/EXHIBIT. His collection of oil on canvas paintings take note from Northern European old masters such as Rembrandt and Van Eyck, while the color palette and subject matter bring the paintings back into the contemporary. Unlike old masters portraits where the subject is typically looking towards the viewer, Butler’s works portray a subject looking down or inward, suggesting an internal dialogue.
 

In most cases, the illustrated subject is his daughter Maggie, as she represents the “everyman or everywoman” to him, but upon completion of the work, Butler will find his own thoughts and emotions are most present in the portrait. She then becomes more of a vessel of the artist’s mind, and the portrait is no longer of her, but almost a portrait of Butler himself. Hinted imagery of religion and war alter the portrait and force the viewer to delve further into both the artist’s and their own psyches.
 

Richard Butler was born in Hampton Court, England and studied painting at the Epson School of Art and Design. Upon graduation, he formed The Psychedelic Furs, and after a successful career as the band’s singer/songwriter, he returned to painting. He currently lives and works in Beacon, New York.