Brought up in Scotland, Laura Buxton's deep love of the Scottish countryside and coast has been with her since early childhood.
In London, she studied at the City and Guilds School of Arts and continued her studies in Florence, firstly at the Signorini Simi Studio, and then with painter Ben F. Long, himself a former student of the Italian painter Pietro Annigoni. After leaving Florence in 1983 she moved to the Provence in the South of France to explore the landscape, transposing onto canvas a new realism of the temporal value of light through colour. Established in her studio in Paris since 1987, Buxton’s numerous exhibitions (in the UK, USA, France, Italy), commissions and prizes (Elizabeth Greenshields Award, Canada) have familiarized an international audience with her work. For the next decade she also worked alongside Ben Long on a series of his frescoes in North Carolina. Always willing to try new experiences 1991 saw her commissioned by the British Armed Forces to depict an operation at the beginning of the first Gulf War. In 1992, accompanying the Royal National Theatre troupe performing Richard III, on tour in the United States, her portraits capture the actors in the midst of their performance.
In 1994, shocked by the brutal war in former Yugoslavia, so close to home on the doorstep of Europe, she ventured to Bosnia Hercegovinia, in search of friends and answers. The NGO world was already heavily subscribed to, so she decided to depict the destruction of the urban fabric of Mostar and produced a large collection of oil paintings and ink wash drawings. They have been published in the book 'Ruined Landscapes, Vestiges of Bosnia'.
Equally at ease in the Sahara desert as the highlands of Scotland or the derelicts wineries in Bercy, Paris, she renders the temporary tranquillity of endangered slices of life.
Since 2000, she has aimed her brush at subject-objects, intact and peaceful stones aligned or fruits suspended, as well as portraiture.
Grandi en Ecosse en 1961, Laura Buxton s’imprègne des paysages dès son enfance entre la campagne et la côte écossaise (Seascape paintings).
À Londres, elle étudie la peinture à la City and Guilds School of Arts avant d'aller à Florence, à l’Atelier Signorini Simi et ensuite deviens apprenti du peintre american, Ben F. Long. En 1983 elle quitte Florence pour aller séjourné dans la sud de la France ou elle se penche sur les paysages de Provence en transposant à la valeur temporelle de la lumière par la couleur.
Installée depuis 1987 à Paris, de nombreuses expositions, commandes et plusieurs prix (dont la prestigieuse Elizabeth Greenshields Award du Canada) la font connaître auprès d’un public international. Pendant une dizaine d'années elle travaille avec Ben F. Long sur ses commandes publiques des fresques en Caroline du Nord aux Etats-Unis. En 1991, une commande de l’Armée britannique l'emmène aux Emirates pour faire une tableau sur la première guerre du Golfe. Lors de la tournée en Amérique de Richard III du Théâtre National Royal en 1992, ses portraits des acteurs saissent le fol engouement des acteurs.
En 1994, elle se rend sur les paysages de guerre aux Balkans, les ruines de Mostar, où à l’encre de Chine et à la peinture à l’huile, elle relate le déchirement du tissu humain et urbain publié dans le livre "Ruined Landscapes, Vestiges of Bosnia". Etant aussi à l'aise au Sahara, les montagnes d'Ecosse qu'aux anciens entrepôts abandonnées de vin parisiens à Bercy, elle met en scène des tranches de vie en voie de disparition.
Depuis 2000, elle cible de son pinceau les objets-sujets, pierres alignées, fruits suspendus (, intacts et paisibles ainsi que les portraits de visages, corps et bustes inspirés autant de paysages humains animés et vivant de nature morte. Ses commandes de portrait sont nombreuses en France et La Grand Bretagne.
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Expositions / exhibitions / mostre
2022- "anvers aux abbesses"
2022- "studio simi", fondazione villa bertelli, forte dei marmi, italie
​2021- "anvers aux abbesses", paris
2019- royal pastel society, mall galleries, london.
2018 - presentation du portrait du president de la societe anatomique, professeur v. delmas
2017 – artecornice, piacenza e santa chiara, bobbio, italia.
2015/17 - "signorina simi - la maestra nera simi e suoi allievi", versilia, italia (group)
2016 - "oeuvres récentes", pave d’orsay, rue de lille, paris, france
2012 - "ruined landscapes"’ turchian center, boone, north carolina, u.s.a.
2010/18 - anthony woodd gallery, edinburgh. (group)
2011 - "discerning eye"’ – mall galleries, london. (group)
2008 - gallerie varine - gincourt, paris
2007 - retrospective, mccoll gallery, north carolina, u.s.a.
2007 - shain gallery, charlotte, north carolina, u.s.a..
2004-2005 - résidence à la cité internationale des arts, paris.
2001 - « œuvres récentes », musée-archives-bibliothèque de la grande loge de france, paris
2000 - « ruined landscapes », the mint museum, charlotte, north carolina, u.s.a.
2000 - publication du livre « ruined landscapes »
2000 - "recent paintings" shain gallery, charlotte, north carolina..
1999 - 6eme trophees de la couleur, academie des beaux art, paris. (group)
1999 - expostion paul-louis weiller, institut de france, paris. (group)
1998-2000 - "drawings of the construction of portcullis house"commissioned by the 'house of commons', palace of westminster , london
1997 - "women painting women", jerignan_wicker gallery, san francisco. (group)
1997 - "vestiges of bosnia" queen's college, charlotte, north carolina.
1996 - "vestiges of bosnia" meridian international art center, washington d.c.
1995/6 - " drawings of the restoration of the henry 4th chapel", commissioned by the 'fabric of westminster abbey', london.
1996 - "drawings of london" commissioned by the 'house of commons', palace of westminster , london.
1996 - "recents acquisitions", palace of westminster, london.
1996 - b.p. portrait award, national gallery, london.
1994 - "mostar, summer '94", blue gallery, london.
1993 - the royal society of portrait painters, mall galleries, london.
1992 - drawings of richard iii cast, royal national theatre tour, usa.
1991 -" the gulf war" commande de l'armee britannique.
1991 - "les luminaires de bercy", les caves du dionysos, paris.
1991 - hurlingham gallery, london.
1990 - wolfson college, oxford.
1987 - flying colours gallery, edinburgh.
1986 - the royal society of portrait painters, mall galleries, london.
1986 - royal academy summer exhibition, london.
1984 - the art centre, oban, scotland.
1984 - received the elizabeth greenshields award.
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Publications/livres:
ruined landscape, paintings of the balkan war zone.
signorina simi - la maestra nera simi e suoi allievi
parlimentary works - Palace of Westminster
films:
mme chambon
in the collection of:
houses of parliament, london.
la societe anatomique, ecole de medicine, paris
appalachian state university, usa.
bank of america;
hsbc.
hugh mccoll jr.
earl and countess of elgin
earl and countess of rosebery.
daniele steele.
westminster abbey, london.
eton college, winsdor.
m. et mme ballot.