Born in Birmingham in 1973, much of Richard Trupp's work is informed by a city that once rejoiced in the sobriquet, 'the workshop of the world.' As such, his work possesses an industrial quality which is concomitant with the 'hands-on' attitude still found in this 'city of makers.' His talent was fostered during his BA in Fine Arts/Sculpture at…
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Born in Birmingham in 1973, much of Richard Trupp's work is informed by a city that once rejoiced in the sobriquet, 'the workshop of the world.' As such, his work possesses an industrial quality which is concomitant with the 'hands-on' attitude still found in this 'city of makers.'
His talent was fostered during his BA in Fine Arts/Sculpture at Nottingham Trent University and his subsequent MA degree in Site Specific Sculpture at Wimbledon School of Art. During his MA, Trupp was Assistant Artist to Sir Anthony Caro from whom he garnered a wealth of technical experience.
In 2000 Trupp was visiting lecturer for BA sculpture students at both Nottingham Trent and Kingston Universities. He continued to teach at Kingston and is currently the University's Senior Lecturer in bronze casting having won the university's Enterprise Award for bronze casting in June 2007. As such, Trupp divides his time between teaching sculpture and making his own work.
Trupp's work is grounded in a deep respect for the history of sculpture and a curiosity about the myths that have grown up around it. In 2003, whilst resident at Jude Kelly's 'Metal' in West Hampstead, Trupp carried out extensive research into Roman Mythology which took him to the British School in Rome to experience the city's ancient sites and ruins. As a direct result he began creating new works entitled 'The Vulcanised Series of Sculpture' in 2004. Prior to this the focus of Trupp's work had been the use of industrial materials. In 1999, during his solo show at the Royal Society of British Sculptors in London, Trupp's three exhibition rooms were inhabited by his 'Fixing Blocks;' doughty steel structures with large cast-iron nuts and bolts attached which were intended as a visible means of holding the rooms together.
Trupp's more recent shows include the group show, 'Eyestorm,' on the South Bank, London, 2006; a solo show with Eyestorm in 2007 and 'Celebrations,' a group show at the Stanley Picker Gallery, London, 2007. In 2011, Richard Trupp also exhibited two sculptures: The Juggernaut of Nought and FXBLCKS2000 (The Atomic structure of Humanity) at Sculpture Al Fresco, Great Fosters Hotel, Egham, Surrey.
Trupp has been nominated for the Jerwood Sculpture Prize and has undertaken numerous commissions including those from Wingfield Art, Suffolk, 2001, and the Cass Sculpture Foundation, 2000.
artist portrait by Tom Mulvee
