User:Robert Soden

Robert Soden

An established landscape painter, Robert Soden’s interest in architecture and urban life began when he lived and worked in Rome in the early 1980’s; he has spent much of the last twenty years recording the changes to the city of Sunderland as it has undergone substantial redevelopment. Placing his work as a continuation of the topographical tradition of Girtin, Cotman and Turner, Robert focusses on the human element of architecture, describing where and how people carry out their lives, in prominent sites as well as less well-documented areas. In 2005 the critic William Varley wrote of his work:

‘You can be sure, too, that the decaying Victorian terrace will be a mongrel mix of video stores, off-licences and chip shops. He loves them all’.

Robert often uses weather and light as a metaphor for the politics of change. The paintings are all made outside in front of the motif and because of this they have the veracity of the ‘lived’ experience.

As well as paintings, Robert also makes prints, (etchings) and undertakes commissions, his work can be seen on www.paintingsunderland.com