Imogen Rigden

Biography

Born in Oxford, where she continues to live, Imogen Rigden came to art through a varied career in languages, business and teaching. Creating her own teaching materials encouraged a growing interest in visual expression, leading to almost a decade of evening classes at Sunningwell Art School.

In 2014, she joined The Warehouse Art School in Oxford. Its combination of conceptual enquiry and practical experimentation proved formative, giving her the freedom to explore unfamiliar materials while working within a precise brief. Two further years studying painting at OVADA deepened her practice, and she subsequently held a studio there and led classes in experimental drawing.

Now working from her Cotswold studio and during extended periods in Scotland and Brittany, Imogen develops bodies of work through sustained looking, sketchbook research and experimentation. Her practice encompasses painting, drawing, textiles and sculptural installation, with materials chosen to serve the idea behind each piece.

The natural world remains central to her work: both the wildness of remote landscapes and the quieter presence of nature in ordinary places. She describes her approach as “approachable artivism”, encouraging appreciation as a starting point for environmental care.

Her work has been shown in solo and group exhibitions, including three solo exhibitions at The North Wall in Oxford. Her residency at Burgess Field in Oxford brings together her interests in observation, drawing and the natural environment.

Artist’s Statement

To a large extent, my practice embodies who I am and what I believe in. I work constantly, either putting a piece together or planning it, and carry a sketchbook in which I store words, images and thoughts.

Careful looking over a long period of time helps me discover value in natural things found in the most ordinary places. I also work in some extremely beautiful locations, and their wildness and remoteness often find their way into my paintings. I might describe my work as approachable artivism: encouraging close observation and appreciation of what still exists in nature, and inviting people to think about protecting it.

I usually work with water-soluble inks and oils. Being able to dissolve and partially erase materials at different stages allows me to build layers within a piece. I work the surfaces with different implements and textiles, only rarely using brushes.

I hope my work attracts and questions in equal measure. Each piece begins with a strong concept, and my abstract paintings aim to draw viewers beyond the decorative and inspire curiosity. I trust that an owner will form their own relationship with a work: looking closely, perhaps dreaming of wild places, even those that seem plausible but do not exist in the real world.

Selected Exhibitions

2023

Mythical Woods, selected group exhibition, Stanton Guildhouse, Cotswolds.

2019

Seven Counties Open, selected group exhibition, OVADA Warehouse, Oxford.

2016

Self Portrait of an Ordinary Woman in Copper and Water, sculptural installation, Terre Verte Gallery, North Cornwall.

2016

The Family, sculptural installation, Hemingway Art Gallery, Oxfordshire.

2012

Lost Landscapes, CPRE Oxfordshire, Oxford.

Residencies and Affiliations

2025 to present

Ewan Macfarlane Gallery, Woodstock.

2025

Artist residency, Burgess Field, Oxford.

2021

Residency, Terre Verte Gallery.

2021

Associate featured artist, OVADA.