230:, 2017) or laughing out loud. Halls cites Cixousâs retelling of the Chinese general Sun Tse âwho decapitates a group of women he is trying to train as soldiers, so disconcerted, so disgusted is he by their persistent laughter and refusal to take his orders seriously. This resonates with me deeply. Acts of political resistance come in many forms and when I paint images of women laughing, eating, reclining, reading or simply looking, I am always cognisant of the fact that the most seemingly innocuous actions can be subversive.â In many of the images, the womenâs âbadâ behaviour becomes less innocuous and tips towards making them a danger to others and possibly to themselves. They jilt, commit arson, vandalise, loot, maraud.
191:, she performed Inferna, a character she created after being inspired by a costume she found in a charity shop in Brixton. Whilst she used external performers for other works in the series, self-portraits have always been an important aspect of her oeuvre though Halls has stated that she rarely paints herself as herself. Halls allows paintings to evolve in the making rather than beginning with preparatory drawings. This mirrors her interest in depicting women in evolving states, in liminal states, held sometimes in suspension.
152:, and the fashion for glamorising the past), Hallsâs paintings examine gender, class, identity and sexuality. A voracious researcher, Halls has claimed she is magpie-like, attracted by beautiful things but also by the discarded and careworn. She collects costumes - often foraged from charity or thrift shops - from different countries and periods, aware that the stories of their owners may remain forever unknowable.
275:
National
Portrait Gallery, London, The R.A. Summer Exhibition, The Royal Society of Portrait Painters, The Discerning Eye, The Ruth Borchard Self Portrait Competition. In 2004, Halls won the Villiers David Prize which enabled her to visit Berlin for the first time and make her 'Cabaret' series. In 2010, she won the Founderâs Purchase Prize at the ING Discerning Eye show and thus entered their collection. Her 2019
155:
Her paintings focus on the materiality of peopleâs lived environments, seducing the viewer with exquisite still lifes or her emphasis on fabrics and hair. Often domestic in scale and subject, they rebut the notion that grandiose history paintings are a better barometer of contemporary life. They ask:
274:
Hallsâs work is in myriad private and public collections, both in the U.K. and overseas. Besides solo exhibitions at Beaux Arts, Bath; Hay Hill, London; and at Reuben Colley Fine Art, Birmingham, her work has been shown in numerous group shows in the UK and US, including the BP Portrait Award at The
97:
Growin up, she aspired to be an actress and her long-standing interest in drama and performance is evident in the baroque sensibility of many of her works. This is reflected in her name as she changed it to "Hall" in hopes that she would be inducted into the Hall of Fame one day. Hall has said that
194:
Halls has also explored consumption and abstinence, as in her 'Appetite' series (2013â14), where women transgress by not behaving as they are expected to: Halls shows one gorging on popcorn, eating with her mouth open (referencing, perhaps, the eighteenth century celebrity portraitist
223:
One of Hallsâs most renowned series - 'Laughing While' (2012 onwards) â depicts women engaged in more transgressive acts that interrogate encultured norms around femininity. These women are always active subjects â often breaking propriety just by eating messily
307:
305:
In 2022, Halls featured on
Episode 1 of BBC's Extraordinary Portraits hosted by Tinie Tempah where she was commissioned to paint twin sisters who survived a crocodile attack in Mexico. Also in 2022, Halls'
283:. The portraitâs pose derived from an amalgam of all the live moments, mannerisms and movements, Halls witnessed in her studio while Horse performed her best-loved song âCareful,â for her live and
199:
and her innovation of showing her teeth in her self-portraits â something that was considered uncouth or deemed the sign of a maniac; Halls paints the teeth last in her paintings). Inspired by
295:
98:
she often equates painting with performance and that her models collude with her in creating theatrical scenarios for which the viewer is invited to tease out narratives.
204:
265:
425:
257:(filmed by BBC Arts & Avalon Productions for BBC Four as part of the Lights Up festival, April 2021). She and Parkinson were recorded
179:, Halls does not consider her work surreal. However, performance, theatricality, illusion, and magic are recurring themes. Her exhibition
730:
725:
187:, London in 2009 borrowed the language of cabaret performance, Halls re-imaging herself as the impresario of a troupe. For her painting
156:
how is womenâs behaviour policed by society and how do women internalise those expectations and limitations through self-surveillance?
117:
Hallsâs practice has relied on painting from life, memory, and photographs. Referencing everything from high art and philosophy to the
82:(born 1974) is an English figurative painter known for her images of wayward women who refuse to conform to societyâs expectations.
276:
240:
750:
310:
was acquired for the permanent collection of the
Science Museum, London, UK as part of their COVID-19 Collecting Project.
216:, 2013 where platters of working-class food teeter on the edge of this feast for one, much like the plate in Caravaggioâs
109:
constantly and did it that way.â She moved near a former theatre in south London where she established her first studio.
451:
280:
745:
506:
360:
56:
344:
234:
740:
581:
105:
but found that she was very self-reliant. When she moved to London, she âjust painted, worked hard, went to the
134:
735:
225:
352:
251:
196:
336:
632:
531:
315:
308:
portrait of Katie
Tomkins - Mortuary & Post Mortem Services Manager at West Hertfordshire NHS Trust
657:
383:
376:
244:
102:
720:
271:, Hallsâs exhibition 'Crime Spree' (2021) examines the taboo subject of women and criminality.
184:
121:(including, at different times, Charcotâs âThe Iconographie Photographique de la SalpĂȘtriĂšre,â
164:
200:
46:
328:
715:
180:
368:
299:
160:
8:
243:
for what became a major lockdown art project in the UK during the global Covid pandemic:
391:
212:
149:
122:
313:
Halls was commissioned to create the
Stretching Room paintings for Disney's 2023 film
176:
606:
399:
172:
106:
91:
556:
101:
Describing herself as mainly self-taught, Hall took a foundation course in art at
700:
695:
690:
709:
258:
145:
141:
130:
291:
210:, another woman (Halls again) takes over the traditionally male role in
168:
477:
236:
Portrait of Katie
Tomkins, Mortuary & Post Mortem Services Manager
452:"Roxana Halls Paintings at Reuben Colley Fine Art | Feminine Moments"
220:. She wields her implements, carving out her own place in the world.
685:
259:
in conversation at her London studio for BBC Radio 4's Only
Artists
426:"6 Contemporary Feminist Artists Active Today by Ruth Millington"
420:
418:
287:; the pose was the one Halls felt best encapsulated her sitter.
415:
625:
290:
In 2020, Halls became a founder-member and later
Director of
507:"Roxana Halls: 'I often equate painting with performance'"
68:
500:
498:
495:
346:
Terina the Paper Tearer & Inferna the Human Torch
189:
Terina The Paper Tearer and
Inferna The Human Torch
279:was acquired for the permanent collection of the
239:by her colleague Natalie Miles-Kemp on behalf of
707:
478:"Artfully Dressed: Women in the Art World, Home"
362:Girt & Ina van Elben's Tingel Tangel Machine
574:
582:"OtherPeoplesPixels Interviews Roxana Halls"
300:InFems's collaboration with Carolina Herrera
277:portrait of Scottish musician Horse McDonald
319:. The works are now in the Disney Archive.
252:portraits for Katherine Parkinsonâs play
658:"ROXANA HALLS - Laughing While Leaving"
708:
470:
241:West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust
298:in 2022 as part of 'Nightclubbing' -
250:Halls was also commissioned to make
140:the songs of Nick Cave, Peaches and
233:In 2020 Halls was invited to paint
13:
731:21st-century English women artists
726:20th-century English women artists
281:Scottish National Portrait Gallery
103:Plymouth College of Art and Design
14:
762:
679:
504:
322:
57:Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation
650:
137:The Garden of Earthly Delights,
637:National Galleries of Scotland
599:
549:
524:
444:
268:Self-portrait as St. Catherine
181:âRoxana Hallsâ Tingle-Tangle,â
1:
408:
227:Laughing While Eating Yoghurt
167:series (2012) may recall the
85:
751:People from Plaistow, Newham
338:Threesome II (Self-Portrait)
296:her first NFT "Pulse Points"
129:, the war time paintings of
7:
536:National Galleries Scotland
354:Laughing While Eating Salad
34:1974 (age 49–50)
10:
767:
701:Interview on Tingle-Tangle
247:. conceived by Tom Croft.
611:Wall Street International
205:Caravaggioâs versions of
112:
63:
52:
42:
30:
23:
746:British feminist artists
607:"Roxana Halls. Appetite"
266:Artemisia Gentileschiâs
245:Portraits for NHS Heroes
586:OtherPeoplesPixels Blog
741:English women painters
385:A Little Light Reading
378:Laughing While Leaving
292:InFems Art Collective.
197:Elisabeth Vigée-LeBrun
696:Interview on Appetite
207:Judith and Holofernes
201:Artemisia Gentileschi
47:Feminist art movement
736:Painters from London
691:Interview on Costume
686:Roxana Halls website
511:Studio International
183:produced for the
165:âSuspended Womenâ
150:avantgarde cinema
131:Dame Laura Knight
127:Ă©criture feminine
90:Hall was born in
77:
76:
758:
673:
672:
670:
668:
654:
648:
647:
645:
643:
629:
623:
622:
620:
618:
613:. 19 August 2014
603:
597:
596:
594:
592:
578:
572:
571:
569:
567:
561:New Art Projects
553:
547:
546:
544:
542:
528:
522:
521:
519:
517:
502:
493:
492:
490:
488:
482:Artfully Dressed
474:
468:
467:
465:
463:
456:Feminine Moments
448:
442:
441:
439:
437:
422:
218:Supper at Emmaus
185:National Theatre
173:Dorothea Tanning
171:of artists like
107:National Gallery
92:Plaistow, London
73:
70:
37:Plaistow, London
21:
20:
766:
765:
761:
760:
759:
757:
756:
755:
706:
705:
682:
677:
676:
666:
664:
662:roxanahalls.com
656:
655:
651:
641:
639:
631:
630:
626:
616:
614:
605:
604:
600:
590:
588:
580:
579:
575:
565:
563:
555:
554:
550:
540:
538:
530:
529:
525:
515:
513:
503:
496:
486:
484:
476:
475:
471:
461:
459:
450:
449:
445:
435:
433:
432:. 10 March 2020
424:
423:
416:
411:
325:
316:Haunted Mansion
177:Meret Oppenheim
115:
88:
67:
38:
35:
26:
17:
16:English painter
12:
11:
5:
764:
754:
753:
748:
743:
738:
733:
728:
723:
718:
704:
703:
698:
693:
688:
681:
680:External links
678:
675:
674:
649:
633:"Roxana Halls"
624:
598:
573:
557:"Roxana Halls"
548:
532:"Roxana Halls"
523:
494:
469:
443:
413:
412:
410:
407:
406:
405:
397:
389:
381:
374:
366:
358:
350:
342:
334:
324:
323:Selected works
321:
114:
111:
87:
84:
75:
74:
65:
61:
60:
54:
50:
49:
44:
40:
39:
36:
32:
28:
27:
24:
15:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
763:
752:
749:
747:
744:
742:
739:
737:
734:
732:
729:
727:
724:
722:
721:Living people
719:
717:
714:
713:
711:
702:
699:
697:
694:
692:
689:
687:
684:
683:
663:
659:
653:
638:
634:
628:
612:
608:
602:
587:
583:
577:
562:
558:
552:
537:
533:
527:
512:
508:
505:McNay, Anna.
501:
499:
483:
479:
473:
457:
453:
447:
431:
427:
421:
419:
414:
403:
402:
398:
395:
394:
390:
387:
386:
382:
380:
379:
375:
372:
371:
367:
364:
363:
359:
356:
355:
351:
348:
347:
343:
340:
339:
335:
332:
331:
327:
326:
320:
318:
317:
311:
309:
303:
301:
297:
293:
288:
286:
282:
278:
272:
270:
269:
262:
260:
256:
253:
248:
246:
242:
238:
237:
231:
229:
228:
221:
219:
215:
214:
209:
208:
202:
198:
192:
190:
186:
182:
178:
174:
170:
166:
162:
161:âShadow Playâ
157:
153:
151:
147:
143:
139:
138:
132:
128:
124:
123:HĂ©lĂšne Cixous
120:
110:
108:
104:
99:
95:
93:
83:
81:
72:
66:
62:
58:
55:
51:
48:
45:
41:
33:
29:
22:
19:
665:. Retrieved
661:
652:
640:. Retrieved
636:
627:
615:. Retrieved
610:
601:
589:. Retrieved
585:
576:
564:. Retrieved
560:
551:
539:. Retrieved
535:
526:
514:. Retrieved
510:
485:. Retrieved
481:
472:
460:. Retrieved
458:. 6 May 2019
455:
446:
434:. Retrieved
429:
400:
392:
384:
377:
369:
361:
353:
345:
337:
330:Beauty Queen
329:
314:
312:
304:
294:and created
289:
284:
273:
267:
264:Inspired by
263:
254:
249:
235:
232:
226:
222:
217:
211:
206:
193:
188:
158:
154:
146:Sylvia Plath
142:Robert Wyatt
136:
126:
118:
116:
100:
96:
89:
80:Roxana Halls
79:
78:
25:Roxana Halls
18:
716:1974 births
667:11 February
617:11 February
591:11 February
566:11 February
541:11 February
516:11 February
487:11 February
462:11 February
436:11 February
159:Whilst her
69:roxanahalls
710:Categories
409:References
370:Girl Table
285:a cappella
169:surrealism
86:Early life
642:16 August
119:zeitgeist
430:Rise Art
135:Boschâs
43:Movement
393:Carvery
255:Sitting
213:Carvery
64:Website
113:Career
53:Awards
59:Award
669:2021
644:2021
619:2021
593:2021
568:2021
543:2021
518:2021
489:2021
464:2021
438:2021
404:2010
401:Emma
396:2013
388:2012
373:2014
365:2007
357:2013
349:2009
341:2018
333:2014
203:and
163:and
71:.com
31:Born
175:or
125:âs
712::
660:.
635:.
609:.
584:.
559:.
534:.
509:.
497:^
480:.
454:.
428:.
417:^
302:.
261:.
148:,
144:,
133:,
94:.
671:.
646:.
621:.
595:.
570:.
545:.
520:.
491:.
466:.
440:.
224:(
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
