England is an important world centre for figurative painters who were born overseas

Those more likely to commission a portrait than buy an abstract painting are probably already queuing outside the door of Jonathan Yeo (b. 1970). It was from his studio that The King’s huge red official portrait emerged in 2024.

However, many English artists painting today are not interested in producing a specific likeness. Rather, they are drawn to the possibilities of the figure itself.

Lynette Yiadom-Boakye (b. 1977) paints swiftly and assertively. Her black bodies, on show until September 17 at the De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhillon-Sea, East Sussex, as part of the Hayward Gallery touring exhibition ‘To Improvise A Mountain: Lynette Yiadom-Boakye Curates’, dance, leap, ponder, read or pose in socks and underpants.

All make their presence felt, despite being drawn from her own imagination, as do the figures of American-born Chantal Joffe (b. 1969), who has lived in England since the age of 13. She works from life (and from photographs of her own family), but her paintings of mothers and children are not intended solely to represent specific individuals — rather, they consider the complex states of motherhood and parenting.

English painting has had a long and fruitful relationship with artists born overseas — one-quarter of the founding members of the RA came from abroad, including the Swiss-born Angelica Kauffman and American Benjamin West. They brought with them new ideas and styles and joined forces with English-born artists to debate and exhibit great art.

Today, England is an important world centre for figurative painters who were born overseas — the late Paula Rego (1935–2022) moved here from Portugal in 1976 and stayed until her death more than 45 years later. London is also home for Celia Paul (b. 1959) and Kudzanai-Violet Hwami (b. 1993), born in India and Zimbabwe respectively. Paul’s solitary self-portraits speak of an introspective life; Hwani’s explosive colours fuse family snapshots with accumulated images from a digital life.

This is part one of our five-part series on the new school of English painting. They will be published every Thursday afternoon throughout September.

Click here to read part one, on the new abstract painters.