Karl Rudziak Artist

Rudziak is a figurative painter based in Portsmouth, UK with a focus on portraiture. His main areas of interest lie in social issues particularly social and palliative care, exploring attitudes to death and mental health through community engagement. Supplemented with portrait painting workshops, commissions and sales.

Rudziak's previous series of projects called “We Don’t Need Culture” examined mulitple perspectives towards the word culture, in particular the elitist connotations it can invoke, particularly in the context of arts and culture in Portsmouth. He worked with Portsmouth City Council communities teams and Arts Council England to engaged the local community in low income, inner city areas through sketching and painting portraits of local characters, working in community hubs, youth centres, coffee mornings and multicultural groups. 

His work resides in private and public hands, as part of Portsmouth city art collection and the Royal Navy, it has been exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery, National Gallery of Scotland, the Royal Academy, the Royal Institute of Oil Painters, the Royal Society of Marine Artists and is featured in the book 500 portraits: BP Portrait Award by Sandy Nairn.







CV:

Education:
1994-97 BA Hons, Art, Design and Media, First Class, University of Portsmouth

PUBLICATIONS
500 Portraits
The National Portrait Gallery, London


GROUP & SOLO EXHIBITIONS.

November/December 2023
Royal Institute of Oil Painters, Annual Exhibition

March 2022 - March 2023
Parker Harris, Football Art Prize
Rochdale, Touchstones; Sheffield Millennium Gallery and Sunderland Museum and City Gardens

August 2020 - March 22
Portsmouth Revisited 2, Portsmouth City Museum

Oct 2021
Wilder Exhibition, Round Tower Old Portsmouth

Sept 2021
Royal Academy Summer Show, London

Aug 21
Portrait of Pompey, Solo Show Round Tower, Old Portsmouth

June 21
Interactive Weaves, Old Portsmouth

June 21
Pause, Reflect, Create Exhibition, Round Tower, Old Portsmouth

Dec 20
Advent Exhibition, Jackhouse Gallery, Old Portsmouth

Oct 20
Back and Fill Exhibition, Round Tower, Old Portsmouth

May 30 - 24 2019
D-Day Veterans from the Royal Collection, Portsmouth City Museum

May 14 - 24 2019
8 at the Edge group exhibition, Yellow Edge Gallery, Gosport

October 11 - 20 2018
Mall Galleries Royal Society of Marine Artists, Annual exhibition, London

June 12 - Aug 19
2018 Royal Academy 250th Summer Show, London

April 2018 - May 2019
We Don’t Need Culture 3 Project with Arts Council England

April 2017 - May 2018
We Don’t Need Culture 2 Project with Arts Council England

April 2016 - April 2017
We Don’t Need Culture Project with Arts Council England

Dec 2016
Solo Exhibition Kings Theatre, Southsea

March 2015 - Dec 2015
We Don’t Need Culture Project with Portsmouth City Council

April 18 - May 18 2015
Group Exhibition, Atelier Gallery, Portsmouth

Jul/Aug 2015
Portsmouth and Hampshire Art Society Summer Exhibition
First Prize, Public Vote

Jul/Aug 2014
Portsmouth and Hampshire Art Society Summer Exhibition

July 2013
Solo Exhibition, The Zodiac Gallery, The Guildhall, Portsmouth
June 2013 First Prize,
The Royal Naval Yacht Club, Portsmouth Festivities

Jul/Aug 2013
Portsmouth and Hampshire Art Society Summer Exhibition
Second and Third Prize, Public Vote

Sept - Oct 2012
Solo Exhibition, Life - the Gallery, Farnham

Jul/Aug 2012
Portsmouth and Hampshire Art Society Summer Exhibition

Sept 2011
Group Exhibition, The New Gallery, Portscatho

Jul/Aug 2011
Portsmouth and Hampshire Art Society Summer Exhibition
First Prize

Dec 2010
Finalist National Open Art Competition, Minerva Theatre, Chichester

July 2010
The New Gallery, Portscatho

July 2010
Group Exhibition, The Kennels, Goodwood

Oct 2010 - Mar 2011
Artist in residence, Portsmouth Grammar School

Jul/Aug 2010
First & Third Prize,
Portsmouth and Hampshire Art Society, Portsmouth

June -Sept 2009
BP Awards, National Portrait Gallery, London, Southampton City Gallery and the Dean Gallery of the National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh

Sept 2008
First Prize
Portsmouth Open Art Competition,,
Portsmouth City Museum