Video
Eileen Cooper RA in her studio
In this short clip, Eileen Cooper RA talks about the importance of drawing in her work, ahead of her exhibition at the Royal Academy in summer 2015. Filmed by Charlie Paul, Producer Lucy Paul.
Eileen Cooper RA (b. 1953)
Eileen Cooper RA (b. 1953)
Eileen Cooper was born 1953 in Glossop, in the Derbyshire Peak District. She studied at Goldsmiths College from 1971-1974 being in the cohort of students who were selected by Jon Thompson. Senior members of staff at that time included Bert Irvin RA, Basil Beattie RA and Michael Craig Martin RA. She went on to study Painting at the Royal College of Art under Peter de Francia, graduating in 1977 and soon began to exhibit her work.
During the 1980s she became a major figure, well known and regarded for her strong and passionate figuration. Cooper has always taught part time in numerous institutions including St Martins, Royal College of Art and the Royal Academy Schools. She became a Royal Academician in 2001 and served as Keeper of the Royal Academy between 2010 and 2017, making her the first woman in the history of the Academy to do so.
Themes
Sometimes described as a magic realist, Eileen Cooper brings an unapologetically female perspective to her subject-matter, which encompasses sexuality, motherhood, life and death. Her richly diverse images, simultaneously bold and tender, reveal a range of feeling that is both deeply engrossing and readily accessible, yet still very much part of contemporary art practice.
Throughout her career Cooper’s work has contained a strong autobiographical element. However, her vision is always more allegorical than anecdotal, her concerns and experiences as relevant and timeless as those of the human spirit itself.
A monograph on Eileen Cooper RA written by Martin Gayford was published in May 2015. Eileen Cooper: Between the Lines is available at the RA Shop. In 2015 the exhibition Hide and Seek: Drawings by Eileen Cooper RA was held at the Royal Academy.
Profile
Printmaker
Born: 1953 in Glossop, Derbyshire, England, United Kingdom
Nationality: British
Elected RA: 24 May 2001
Keeper from: 2011 - 2017
Gender: Female
Visit Eileen Cooper RA (b. 1953)'s website
Preferred media: Painting and Printmaking
Works by Eileen Cooper in the RA Collection
15 results
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Eileen Cooper RA
Search, 2001
Linocut
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Eileen Cooper RA
Peace, 2001
Linocut
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Eileen Cooper RA
In the Garden, 2001
Pen and ink with wash on paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Secret Garden 1 - After Bosch, 2001
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Eileen Cooper RA
'Round Midnight, 2012
Woodcut
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Eileen Cooper RA
Red Sun, 2001
Pen and ink, pastel, conté crayon and gouache on japanese paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Child, 2001
Ink, pastel, conté crayon and gouache on natural japanese paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Jump, 2001
Pen and ink, pastel, conté crayon and gouache on natural japanese paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Twins, 2001
Pen and ink, pastel, conté crayon and gouache on natural japanese paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Jig, 2001
Pen and ink, pastel and conté crayon on natural japanese paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Wake, 2001
Pen and ink, pastel and gouache on natural japanese paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Potter, 2001
Pen and ink, conté crayon and pastel on white japanese paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Kick, 2001
Pen and ink, conté crayon and pastel on white japanese paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Hold, 2001
Pen and ink, pastel and gouache on white japanese paper
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Eileen Cooper RA
Dance, 2001
Pen and ink, pastel, conté crayon and watercolour on white japanese paper
Works associated with Eileen Cooper in the RA Collection
1 results
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Lots of people's lives are thrown together in my pictures, but there is also a strong sense of separateness. I find it fascinating that, in the busy lives that everyone leads, people have a sense of their own time, their own moments of reverie.
Eileen Cooper RA
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Gallery
Eileen Cooper RA, Trapeze II, 2012.
Eileen Cooper RA, Jump, 2001.
Eileen Cooper RA, Bathing, 1987.
Eileen Cooper RA, Hart, 2014.
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Selected CV
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Recent Solo Exhibitions
2018 Under the Same Moon, Letitia Gallery, Beirut
Night Music (or Labour of Love), The Cornhall, Diss, Norfolk
2017 Till the Morning Comes, The Fine Art Society, London
Eileen Cooper: A Woman’s Skin, Wolfson College, Cambridge
2016 Love-in-Idleness, Rook and Raven Gallery, London
Between the Lines, Galerie MIRO, Prague
2015 Hide and Seek, Drawing 1977-2014, Royal Academy of Arts, touring to Swindon Museum and Art Gallery; and Mercer Art Gallery, Harrogate
Garden, Rabley Drawing Centre, Wiltshire
2014 Eileen Cooper RA, Paintings and Works on Paper, Atelier Rose Gray, Hale, Cheshire
2013 Edge to Edge, Art First, London
2012 Aldeburgh Beach Lookout Project, Suffolk
2011 Showing Off, Art First, London
2010 Collages, Sir Hugh Casson Room, Royal Academy of Arts
New Work, Arts Club, London
2009 Dreams of Elsewhere, Art First, London
Crosscurrent, Brook Gallery, Budleigh Salterton, Devon -
Selected Collections
Arts Council of Great Britain
Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery
Bristol Museum and Art Gallery
British Council
British Museum
Cleveland Gallery
Contemporary Arts Society
Dallas Museum of Art
Imperial College London
Kunsthalle, Nuremberg
Manchester City Art Galleries
Pallant House
Royal Collection
Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne
Victoria and Albert Museum, London Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester
Wolverhampton Art Gallery
Walpole Library, Yale University, USA -
Selected commissions and awards
2017 Coordinator, Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition
2010, 2013 Artist in residence, Alayrac, France
2009 Curator and coordinator, Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition
Selector, Originals, Mall Galleries, London
2008/9 Artist in residence, Lewisham College
1999 Cover and illustrations for Carol Ann Duffy’s children’s poetry book, Midnight Meeting
Arts & Humanities Research Board, Award for Ceramic work
1998/9 Artist in residence, Dulwich Picture Gallery
1994 Inside Art, Documentary for Channel 4 Television
1993 The Art, TV Broadcast, BBC Education
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Art sales at the RA
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Diva
Radiating a joyous femininity, this large-scale linocut is by Eileen Cooper RA whose work encompasses sexuality, motherhood, life and death. This print is available to buy through Art Sales at the RA.
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Shadow
Bold lines, formal composition, and images imbued with playfulness combine to engage and delight in the works of Eileen Cooper RA. This print is available to buy through Art Sales at the RA.
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Rosa Solo
This limited edition print by Eileen Cooper was produced to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Royal Academy of Arts in London. The print is available to buy through Art Sales at the RA.
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My studio life
A home studio
In the frame
A working space
Testing the metal
A fluid line
Shelf life
A place for printmaking
Tools of the trade
A studio in the Academy
Private space
The model’s stair
A special gift
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Shop
Eileen Cooper: Between The Lines
Spanning the breadth of her career, this beautiful publication examines three decades of Eileen Cooper RA’s work. It features an investigative essay by Martin Gayford and a series of recent interviews with the artist.
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