Nicholas de Lacy-Brown
Artist | Printmaker | Illustrator
bio
Born in Sussex, United Kingdom
Lives and works in London
Colourful, dynamic, descriptive, compelling: a few words whose collective use goes some way to describe the artwork of British-born, London-based painter and printmaker, Nicholas
De Lacy-Brown. Despite training as a lawyer and devoting his early years to academic studies, De Lacy-Brown’s self-taught artistic journey began as an instinctive reaction to the world around him; an innate expression of a personality bursting at the seams with fantastical imagery and often surreal reimaginings of his many passions and personal experiences.
Prolific from an early age, the artist has exhibited widely across his home country of England, as well as in the cities of London, Paris, Copenhagen, Amsterdam and New York. In 2009, he was awarded the International Young Artist’s prize at the International Festival of Art in Marbella (FIAM) and in 2015 was invited to be part of a prestigious installation in the celebrated Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, where his work remained on exhibition until early 2016. In 2014, his works entered the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and were exhibited as part of a group showcase in London’s famous Dulwich Picture Gallery and in the Bankside Gallery on London's South Bank. His solo exhibitions include the self-exploratory Between Me and My Reflection (2006), Sebastian's Arrows (2008) and When (S)pain became the Norm (2014), which explored a traumatic episode that coloured much of the Artist’s later work, as well as themes of Spanish culture and history.
De Lacy-Brown’s style is characterised by whimsical detail, the use of strong colour and a fantastical mix of figurative expression, abstract and cubist composition and surreal imagery. From auto-biographical images and portraiture to illustrative depictions of landscapes and cities, his works have adapted successfully to a range of mediums, from his favourite use of oil on canvas and gouache on paper to intricate illustrations, etchings and relief prints. His popular illustrations have featured in international print media, and are today at the heart of the multi-award winning blog, The Daily Norm.
Solo Exhibitions
2014
When (S)pain became the Norm | Strand Gallery, London
2013
Gouaches & recent works | British Film Institute, London
2009
Houses of Art, Marbella
2008
Metamorphosis: Paris, Parody, Paparazzi | Eaton Terrace Gallery, London
2008
Sebastian’s Arrows | Arndean Gallery, Cork Street, London
2006
Between Me & My Reflection | Rivoli Gallery, Sussex
2000
Le Paris Formidable | Rivoli Gallery, Sussex
Group Exhibitions
2020
Royal Society of Portrait Painters Annual Exhibition 2020 | Mall Gallery, London
2017 and 2018
Contemporary Watercolour Prize | Bankside Gallery, London
2014-16
Contemporary Artists inspired by Van Gogh | Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam
2014
Summer Exhibition | Dulwich Picture Gallery, London
2014
East London Printmakers Summer Show | Embassy Tea Gallery, London
2014
The Art Academy Summer Show | Art Academy, London Bridge
2011
One Million Euros of Art | Casino Marbella, Spain
2010
Gallery Nyhavn, Copenhagen
2010
Festival International de Arte Marbella
2009
Gallery Référence, New York
2008
Gallery Référence, Paris (Le Pavillon d’Art Contemporain de Paris)