About the artist
Biography
Nick Grove RSMA is an award-winning British painter based in Stamford, England. Working primarily in oils, his practice encompasses landscape, cityscape, portraiture and the figure, combining traditional draughtsmanship with a contemporary, expressive approach to representational painting.
Largely self-taught, Grove developed his practice through many years of painting directly from life, both outdoors and from the live model. His earlier career as a professional photographer provided a foundation in composition and visual perception, while his commitment to observational painting has shaped a distinctive artistic approach characterised by expressive brushwork, confident drawing and a sensitivity to light, colour and atmosphere.
His subjects range from the streets of London, New York and historic European cities to the British coastline and the quieter intimacy of portraiture and the studio. Across these varied subjects, his work combines careful observation with a spontaneous, painterly response, seeking to capture the individual character and atmosphere of a place or person.
Grove is an elected member of the Royal Society of Marine Artists (RSMA) and a member of the Chelsea Art Society. His paintings have been exhibited extensively throughout the United Kingdom, including at the Mall Galleries, London, with the Royal Society of Marine Artists, Royal Society of Portrait Painters and Royal Institute of Oil Painters, as well as in commercial galleries and national exhibitions. His work is held in private collections in the United Kingdom and internationally.
In 2026, Grove received the Julian Barrow Award for A Sense of Place at the Chelsea Art Society and was selected for the British Art Prize exhibition at the OXO Gallery, London. In 2025, his portrait Tim in the Studio received The Artist Exhibition Award at the TALP Open.
Alongside his professional painting practice, Grove is the founder of Stamford School of Art, where he teaches drawing and painting through courses, workshops and individual tuition. He is also developing Essential Observations, an illustrated publication exploring the practice of observation, drawing, painting and the development of an individual artistic voice.
Artist Statement
Painting, for me, begins with looking.
I’ve always been fascinated by the world around us. The extraordinary beauty found in ordinary places, the way light transforms a familiar street, the character of a face, or the fleeting atmosphere of a particular moment. Painting gives me a reason to stop, pay attention and explore these things more deeply.
Working directly from life is fundamental to my practice. Whether standing on a busy London street, painting along the coast or working from a model in the studio, I value the experience of being present with my subject. There is an honesty and immediacy to this process that I find endlessly rewarding.
I work within the traditions of representational painting, but I’m not interested in simply reproducing what I see. I’m interested in what happens between observation and expression — how a painter interprets the world through choices of colour, tone, composition and the language of paint itself.
A painting is built through countless decisions. What to include, what to leave out, where to place an edge, when to describe something carefully and when to allow a few spontaneous marks to suggest far more. I enjoy this balance between discipline and intuition, between careful observation and the freedom to respond instinctively.
Over time, I’ve come to appreciate that painting is as much about learning to see as it is about learning to paint. The longer I look, the more I discover, and the more I realise how much remains to be understood.
There is also something deeply human about painting from life. It requires patience, curiosity, vulnerability and a willingness to accept uncertainty. Not every painting succeeds, but every experience contributes something to the next.
Ultimately, I paint because I love the experience of looking, discovering and making sense of the world through paint. My hope is that the finished work communicates something of that experience, inviting others to pause, look a little longer and perhaps discover something they might otherwise have overlooked.
Selected Exhibitions
Summer Exhibition – Chelsea Arts Society, London
British Art Prize – OXO Gallery, London
New English Art Club – Mall Galleries, London
Royal Society of Marine Artists — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Society of Portrait Painters — Mall Galleries, London
ING Discerning Eye — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Institute of Oil Painters — Mall Galleries, London
Best of British Exhibition — The Gallery Holt
Thompson’s Galleries — London
Memberships & Awards
Winner – Julian Barrow Art Prize, Chelsea Arts Society (2026)
Winner – The Artist Exhibition Award – Tim in the Studio, TALP Open Exhibition (2025)
Winner – The Artist Magazine Award, Royal Society of Marine Artists Exhibition (2023)
Member – Royal Society of Marine Artists (RSMA)
Elected Member – Chelsea Art Society
Highly Commended – The Buxton Spa Prize
Artists & Illustrators Artist of the Year – Finalist
Teaching
Alongside his professional painting practice, Nick is the founder of Stamford School of Art, where he shares his knowledge and experience through observational drawing and painting courses, workshops and individual tuition.
His teaching is rooted in the belief that learning to see is fundamental to learning to paint. Combining traditional principles with a contemporary, encouraging approach, he helps students develop their technical understanding, confidence and, ultimately, their own individual artistic voice.
Painting London from Life – An Artist’s Journey, ‘Temet Nosca’ by Nick Grove
A personal short film documenting an earlier period of my journey painting from life on the streets of London.
Filmed largely alone using only a mobile phone, it captures something of the freedom, uncertainty, solitude, and quiet persistence involved in working directly from observation within the city. Looking back now, I see not only the paintings themselves, but an artist gradually finding his way through the process of sustained practice and self-discovery.
Though much has evolved since this film was made, the foundations remain the same: observation, atmosphere, and the search for something truthful through painting from life.
2026
Solo Exhibition, Thompsons — Mayfair, London
New English Art Club Open Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Thompson’s Gallery 44th Annual Exhibition — Aldeburgh
Chelsea Art Society Summer Exhibition — Chelsea Old Town Hall, London
The Royal Societies Exhibition — The Barn Gallery, Patchings Art Centre
Monochrome Exhibition — The Gallery Holt, Holt
Blackwater Gallery — Cardiff
2025
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Chelsea Art Society Summer Exhibition — Chelsea Old Town Hall, London
Parkspaces — Regents Park Gallery, London
The Artist Group Exhibition — Patchings Art Centre
Thompson’s Gallery Autumn Catalogue — Mayfair, London
Thompson’s Gallery Annual Exhibition — Aldeburgh
Thompson’s Gallery Coast Exhibition — Aldeburgh
2024
ING Discerning Eye — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Chelsea Art Society Summer Exhibition — Chelsea Old Town Hall, London
Green & Stone Summer Exhibition — Fulham, London
Thompson’s Gallery Autumn Catalogue — Mayfair, London
Thompson’s Gallery Annual Exhibition — Aldeburgh
Best of British IV — Adrian Hill Fine Art, Stamford
2023
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Chelsea Art Society Summer Exhibition — Chelsea Old Town Hall, London
Solo Exhibition — An Artist’s Journey, Thompson’s Gallery, London
Thompson’s Gallery Annual Exhibition — Aldeburgh
Thompson’s Gallery Autumn Exhibition — London
Best of British II — Adrian Hill Fine Art, Stamford
Christmas Exhibition — Thompson’s Gallery, Aldeburgh
2022
Solo Exhibition — The Yarrow Gallery, Oundle
Solo Exhibition — Adrian Hill Fine Art, Stamford
Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
2021
Affordable Art Fair — London (Thompson’s Gallery)
Alfresco — The Gallery Holt
Glorious — Stamford Arts Centre
Best of British — Adrian Hill Fine Art, Stamford
Solo Exhibition — Stamford Arts Centre
Solo Exhibition — The Yarrow Gallery, Oundle
Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Figurative Art Now — Mall Galleries, London
2020
Solo Exhibition — Stamford Contemporary Arts
Solo Exhibition — The Anteroom, Stamford Arts Centre
2019
Solo Exhibition — Stamford Contemporary Arts
Solo Exhibition — The Yarrow Gallery, Oundle
Royal Society of Portrait Painters Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Artist-in-Residence — Oundle School
2018
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition — Mall Galleries, London
Artist-in-Residence — Oundle School
2017
Summer Show — The Dolby Gallery, Oundle
Autumn Show — The Dolby Gallery, Oundle