Eileen Cooper (born 10 June 1953) is a British artist, known primarily as a painter and printmaker.

Early life

Cooper was born in

Glossop Glossop is a market town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is located east of Manchester, north-west of Sheffield and north of the county town, Matlock. Glossop lies near Derbyshire's borders with Cheshire, Greater Manches ...

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

and attended Ashton-under-Lyne College of Further Education. She went on to study at

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wor ...

(1971-1974) and the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...

(1974-1977) gaining an MA in painting.

Career

Between 1977 and 2000 she was visiting lecturer at arts schools across the UK including

Falmouth School of Art Falmouth University ( kw, Pennskol Aberfal) is a specialist public university for the creative industries based in Falmouth and Penryn, Cornwall, England. Founded as Falmouth School of Art in 1902, it was later known as Falmouth College of Ar ...

Leicester College Leicester College is a further education college in Leicester, England. It is one of the largest colleges in the UK, with more than 26,000 students, 1,600 staff, plus an annual budget of over £50million. It has three main campuses in the city ...

of Art & Design, St Martin’s School of Art,

Camberwell College of Arts Camberwell College of Arts is a public tertiary art school in Camberwell, in London, England. It is one of the six constituent colleges of the University of the Arts London. It offers further and higher education programmes, including postgra ...

, and

City & Guilds of London Art School Founded in 1854 as the Lambeth School of Art, the City and Guilds of London Art School is a small specialist art college located in central London, England. Originally founded as a government art school, it is now an independent, not-for-profit ...

. She lectured on Printmaking at the

between 1994 and 2006 and became Head of Printmaking at the

Royal Academy Schools The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its purpo ...

in 2005 until 2010. She was elected a Royal Academician in 2001. From 2010 to 2017, Cooper served as Keeper of the Royal Academy, one of only 4 officers selected from the 80 Royal Academicians, and with primary responsibility for the

, thereby becoming the first woman to be elected to this role in the Royal Academy's 250-year history. In 2017, Cooper curated and co-ordinated the Royal Academy of Arts' 249th annual Summer Exhibition. After ending her teaching role at the Royal Academy Schools in 2017 Cooper returned to drawing from life and portraiture in particular. Two of the works from this series (one of fellow Royal Academician

Cathie Pilkington Cathie Pilkington (born 31 July 1968) is a London-based British sculptor represented by Karsten Schubert London. She studied at Edinburgh College of Art and the Royal College of Art, and was elected as a Royal Academician in 2014. She became ...

and the other a

self-portrait A self-portrait is a representation of an artist that is drawn, painted, photographed, or sculpted by that artist. Although self-portraits have been made since the earliest times, it is not until the Early Renaissance in the mid-15th century tha ...

) were acquired by the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: *National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra *National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London, with s ...

Selected solo exhibitions

* 2019 ''Personal Space'', Huxley-Parlour Gallery, London * 2018 ''Under the Same Moon'', Letitia Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon * 2017 ''Till the Morning Comes'', The Fine Art Society, London * 2017 ''Eileen Cooper: A Woman's Skin'', Wolfson College,

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

* 2016 ''Between the Lines'', Galerie MIRO, Prague, Czech Republic * 2015 ''Hide and Seek: Work on Paper 1977-2014'',

Royal Academy of Arts The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its purpo ...

, London (touring to

Swindon Museum and Art Gallery Swindon Museum and Art Gallery is a mothballed museum in Swindon, Wiltshire, England, which is currently closed while a new venue is sought. Collections The Swindon Art Gallery collection was established in 1944 by a local benefactor, H. J. P. ...

; The Mercer Art Gallery, Harrogate) * 2015 ''In the Garden'', Rabley Drawing Centre, Marlborough, Wiltshire * 2013 ''Edge to Edge'', Art First, London * 2012 South Lookout Project, Aldeburgh Beach, Suffolk * 2010 ''Collages'',

, London * 2008 ''Taking Stock: The Printmaking of Eileen Cooper RA'',

Clifford Chance Clifford Chance LLP is an international law firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom, and a member of the "Magic Circle", a group of London-based multinational law firms. It ranks as one of top ten largest law firms in the world measured bo ...

, London and Liverpool Hope University * 2000 ''Raw Material: Eileen Cooper at Dulwich Picture Gallery'', Dulwich Picture Gallery, London * 1999 ''Second Skin: Eileen Cooper in the 80s and 90s'' travelling exhibition (Wolverhampton, Nottingham, Eastbourne) * 1994 ''Eileen Cooper at Sadlers Wells'', Sadlers Wells Theatre, London * 1992 ''Drawings'', Benjamin Rhodes Gallery, London * 1986

Castlefield Gallery The Castlefield Gallery is an art gallery in Manchester, England, located at 2 Hewitt Street, Knott Mill, Manchester. The gallery, a resource for contemporary visual artists The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmak ...

, Manchester * 1979 AIR Gallery, London

Selected group exhibitions

* 1997-2018 Regular exhibitor at Summer Exhibition,

, London * 2018 ''Sawdust and Sequins: The Art of the Circus'',

Royal West of England Academy The Royal West of England Academy (RWA) is Bristol's oldest art gallery, located in Clifton, Bristol, near the junction of Queens Road and Whiteladies Road. Situated in a Grade 2* listed building, it hosts five galleries and an exhibition program ...

, Bristol * 2016 ''Towards Night'', curated by Tom Hammick,

Towner Art Gallery Towner Art Gallery is located in Eastbourne, East Sussex, on the south coast of England. It hosts one of the most significant public art collections in the South of England and draws over 100,000 visitors a year. It was described by ITV News a ...

, Eastbourne * 2015 ''She Came to Stay'', curated by Aretha Campbell and Lucy Farley
Rook and Raven Gallery
London * 2015 ''Good Figures'', Mall Galleries, London, Jerwood Gridshell Space,

Weald and Downland Open Air Museum The Weald and Downland Living Museum (formerly known as the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum until January 2017) is an open-air museum in Singleton, West Sussex. The museum is a registered charity. The museum covers , with over 50 historic ...

* 2014 ''Jerwood Drawing Prize 1994-2014: Artist as Selector'',

Jerwood Gallery The Hastings Contemporary is a museum of contemporary British art located on The Stade in Hastings, East Sussex and is a not-for-profit organisation. The gallery opened in March 2012 as the Jerwood Gallery and cost £4m to build. The gallery c ...

, Hastings * 2012/13 ''Encounter:'' ''The Royal Academy in the Middle East'', Doha * 2012 ''Encounter:'' ''The Royal Academy in Asia'',

Institute of Contemporary Arts The Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. Located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch, the ICA c ...

, Singapore * 2004 ''The Jerwood Drawing Prize'',

Jerwood Space Jerwood Space is an arts venue at Bankside on Union Street, Southwark, London. The facilities include rehearsal studios, gallery/exhibition space, meeting rooms, a café, etc. Exhibits include contemporary art and photography throughout the bui ...

, London * 1993 ''Contemporary Art at the Courtauld,'' Courtauld Institute of Art, London * 1992 ''The New Patrons: Twentieth Century Art from Corporate Collections'',

Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...

, London * 1992 ''Myth, Dream and Fable'', Angel Row Gallery, Nottingham * 1992 ''Innocence and Experience'',

South Bank Centre Southbank Centre is a complex of artistic venues in London, England, on the South Bank of the River Thames (between Hungerford Bridge and Waterloo Bridge). It comprises three main performance venues (the Royal Festival Hall including the Natio ...

, London,

Manchester Art Gallery Manchester Art Gallery, formerly Manchester City Art Gallery, is a publicly owned art museum on Mosley Street in Manchester city centre. The main gallery premises were built for a learned society in 1823 and today its collection occupies three c ...

, Hull and Glasgow * 1988 ''The New British Painting'', Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati; Chicago Public Library Cultural Center; Haggerty Museum, Milwaukee; South-eastern Center for Contemporary Art, Winston-Salem; Grand Rapids Art Museum, Michigan * 1986 John Moores,

Walker Art Gallery The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group. History of the Gallery The Walker Art Gallery's collection ...

, Liverpool * 1985 ''Hand Signals'', Ikon Gallery, Birmingham * 1984 ''The Image as Catalyst'',

Ashmolean Museum The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology () on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is Britain's first public museum. Its first building was erected in 1678–1683 to house the cabinet of curiosities that Elias Ashmole gave to the University of ...

, Oxford * 1982, 1983, 1987 ''Whitechapel Open'',

Whitechapel Art Gallery The Whitechapel Gallery is a public art gallery in Whitechapel on the north side of Whitechapel High Street, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The original building, designed by Charles Harrison Townsend, opened in 1901 as one of the fir ...

, London * 1980 ''Women's Images of Men'', Institute of Contemporary Art, London * 1974-76 ''New Contemporaries'', Camden Arts Centre, London

Selected public collections

* Arts Council Collection * Government Art Collection, UK * Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery *

Bristol Museum & Art Gallery Bristol Museum & Art Gallery is a large museum and art gallery in Bristol, England. The museum is situated in Clifton, about from the city centre. As part of Bristol Culture it is run by the Bristol City Council with no entrance fee. It holds ...

British Museum, London The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documen ...

* Dallas Museum of Art, USA * Imperial College, London * Kunsthalle, Nuremberg, Germany *

* MIMA, Middlesbrough *

, London *

New Hall Art Collection The Women's Art Collection (before 2022, the New Hall Art Collection) is a permanent collection of modern and contemporary art by women artists, at Murray Edwards College, Cambridge (previously New Hall), England. It includes over 600 works b ...

Murray Edwards College Murray Edwards College is a women-only constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It was founded in 1954 as New Hall. In 2008, following a donation of £30 million by alumna Ros Edwards and her husband Steve, it was renamed Murray Edwar ...

Newport Museum and Art Gallery Newport Museum and Art Gallery ( cy, Amgueddfa ac Oriel Gelf Casnewydd) (known locally as the City Museum ( cy, Amgueddfa Dinas)) is a museum, library and art gallery in the city of Newport, South Wales. It is located in Newport city centre on ...

, Wales * The Open University *

Pallant House Gallery Pallant House Gallery is an art gallery in Chichester, West Sussex, England. It houses one of the best collections of 20th-century British art in the world. History The Gallery's collection is founded on works left to the city of Chichester by ...

, Chichester *

, London *The

Royal Collection Trust The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King Charles III and overseen by the ...

, London * Southampton University Hospital NHS Trust *

* The Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne *

Victoria & Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

, London *

University of Warwick The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands (county), West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded i ...

Art Collection *

Lewis Walpole Library The Lewis Walpole Library in Farmington, Connecticut, possesses important collections of 18th-century British literary remains, including an unrivalled quantity of Horace Walpole's papers and effects from his estate at Strawberry Hill. The coll ...

, Yale University, Connecticut, USA * Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester * Wolverhampton Art Gallery

Awards and honours

* 2018:

Glyndebourne Opera Glyndebourne Festival Opera is an annual opera festival held at Glyndebourne, an English country house near Lewes, in East Sussex, England. History Under the supervision of the Christie family, the festival has been held annually since 1934, e ...

Invited Artist * 2009 & 2017: Co-ordinator and curator,

Summer Exhibition *

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

: Appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) for services to the Arts and Arts Education * 2016: Made Honorary Fellow,

* 2013: Made Honorary Doctor of Arts, Southampton Solent University * 2011: Made Honorary Fellow,

, London * 2011: Elected Keeper of the

, first woman elected to the post since its foundation in 1768 * 2010, 2013: Artist in Residence, Alayrac, Tarn France * 2008-09: Artist in Residence,

Lewisham College Lewisham College is a further education college in the London Borough of Lewisham, south-east London. It was established in 1990, having previously been known as SELTEC (South East London College of Technology) since the early 1970s, which was run ...

, London * 2006: Made Fellow of the

* 2002: Made Honorary Member,

Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers The Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers (RE), known until 1991 as the Royal Society of Painter-Etchers and Engravers, is a leading art institution based in London, England. The Royal Society of Painter-Etchers, as it was originally styled, was ...

* 2001: Elected Royal Academician * 1999:

Arts & Humanities Research Council The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), formerly Arts and Humanities Research Board (AHRB), is a British research council, established in 1998, supporting research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities. History The Arts an ...

Award for ceramics * 1998-99: Artist in Residence Dulwich Picture Gallery, London * 1992: Staircase project Institute of Contemporary Art, London * 1982: Purchase Prize, Nuremberg Drawing Triennial

Publications

* ''Under the Same Moon'' by Anna McNay, Letitia Gallery, Beirut, 2018 * ''Eileen Cooper: A Woman's Skin'' by Meredith M Hale and Philip Lindley, Wolfson College,

, 2017 * ''Eileen Cooper: Till the Morning Comes'' by

Michèle Roberts Michèle Brigitte Roberts FRSL (born 20 May 1949) is a British writer, novelist and poet. She is the daughter of a French Catholic teacher mother (Monique Caulle) and English Protestant father (Reginald Roberts), and has dual UK–France nationa ...

The Fine Art Society The Fine Art Society is a gallery based in both London and in Edinburgh's New Town (originally Bourne Fine Art, established 1978). The New Bond Street, London gallery closed its doors in August 2018 after being occupied by The Fine Art Society si ...

, London, 2017 * ''Eileen Cooper: Between the Lines'' by Martin Gayford, Royal Academy of Arts, 2015 * ''Hide and Seek: Work on Paper 1977-2014'' by Anna McNay, Royal Academy of Arts, 2015 * ''The New British Painting'' by Edward Lucie-Smith, Carolyn Cohen and Judith Higgins, Phaidon, Oxford, 1988 * ''Contemporary Women Artists'' by

Sister Wendy Beckett Wendy Mary Beckett (25 February 1930 – 26 December 2018), better known as Sister Wendy, was a British religious sister and art historian who became known internationally during the 1990s when she presented a series of BBC television documenta ...

, Oxford, 1988 * ''Trans Avant Garde International: New Painting in Britain'' by Achille Bonito Oliva, Milan, 1982

Television and broadcast

* ''In the Studio'' film b
Charlie Paul
2015 * ''Art School, Smart School'', BBC Radio 4 documentary, produced by Just Radio Ltd, 20 November 2014 * ''Women Artists'' interview with Emma Jane Kirby for ‘PM’, BBC Radio 4, 28 August 2014
''What I See Project''
film, 2013 * ''A Story of Eileen Cooper, Artist and Keeper of the Royal Academy’'', ww.ladieswhoimpress.com Ladieswholmpress 17 October 2013 * ''

Woman's Hour ''Woman's Hour'' is a radio magazine programme broadcast in the United Kingdom on the BBC Light Programme, BBC Radio 2, and later BBC Radio 4. It has been on the air since 1946. History Created by Norman Collins and originally presented by A ...

'', BBC Radio 4, 2012 * ''Art School Education'' interview by Alexander Massouras for Tate Library & Archive, 16 September 2010 * ''Inside Art'' documentary series, Channel 4, 1994 (BAFTA nominated) * ''The Art'' documentary, BBC Education, 1993

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Eileen 1953 births Living people 20th-century British printmakers 21st-century British printmakers 20th-century English women artists 21st-century English women artists Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London Alumni of the Royal College of Art British contemporary painters English printmakers English women painters Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Glossop Royal Academicians Women printmakers