Last summer Belinda Eaton's arresting portraits of giant birds and tattooed women won the Catto-sponsored Society of Women Artists Exhibition award. The prestigious prize completed an eventful few months for Belinda. Just before winning the Catto award, she was chosen as one of the guest artists on the BBC's primetime TV show Extraordinary Portraits hosted by Bill Bailey.
Belinda certainly has the artistic CV – and the life experience – to justify her recent success. She was born in Kenya, schooled in Franco's Spain and earned her art degree from St Martins in London. However, she also spent time in New York, France and Karachi. It added up to a nomadic life of world travel during which she encountered "wailing witches who counted their age in potatoes in a small Moorish village, crazy nights of graffiti and rap and the surrealism of a forgotten Clint Eastwood spaghetti western movie set."
Belinda says these experiences have given her the perspective of the outsider, which has infused her artistic ideas. All of this is evident in her new set of paintings, in which heavily inked gang members exist side by side with succulent dahlias and beautiful women in patterned headwear. Stylistically, the paintings reveal a range of diverse influences. Belinda says she is inspired by everything from the early renaissance paintings of Pierro della Francesca to French Impressionist Vuillard to rap music videos.
Belinda's Society of Women Artists prize included a show at the gallery – and now that time has arrived. We are delighted to provide a showcase for one of the UK's most compelling painters.
