Elms Lesters Paintings Rooms

ADAM NEATE first came to the public’s attention by bounteously leaving thousands of his paintings on the street of London, for people to take, or leave, at will.

Since then he has rapidly become Britain's most exciting young artist and a much heralded painter at the forefront of a radical new movement in contemporary art. He is recognised as THE painter of his generation.

In August 2007, Adam’s first one man show at Elms Lesters, the sell-out exhibition entitled Paintings Pots and Prints demonstrated his masterful use of different materials, garnering global interest.

In May 2008 Adam joined with legendary pop surrealist Ron English in the two man show The Adam and Ron Show.

His series of ICON paintings was included in the Elms Lesters Christmas 2008 group show which marked the 25th anniversary of the gallery.

Adam was invited to include one of these powerful paintings in the VISIONARIES exhibition in May 2009 at All Hallows in the City of London alongside luminaries such as Stanley Spencer and Cecil Collins.

On November 14th 2009 Adam Neate staged a public participation event The London Show on the scale of Christo when he, and teams of ditributors, left 1000 works over all 33 London boroughs between dusk and dawn. An estimated 50,000 people were out that night looking for them.

Adam's solo exhibition A NEW UNDERSTANDING in October / November 2009 became one of the most talked about exhibitions of the year with record numbers of visitors, including important collectors and representatives from major international institutions.

A NEW UNDERSTANDING was a transitional exhibition for Adam Neate. As William Oliver wrote in his book introduction:

" This exhibition not only presents the viewer with the most recent stages in Neate’s progress of stylistic and ideological development, it also fulfils his aim to give the audience something to think about and to carry on thinking about, after they leave the paintings themselves. Neate has moved on from his past respectfully and developed his content and his style into something that sets him apart. He has had the courage to follow his truths and make his own way, and make it in a way that projects himself onto a new, aesthetically and stylistically rich plane, that looks both to his past and his future "

Adam Neate is a fearless painter who is constantly experimenting with styles and techniques, and continually pushing forward with his work.

His gallery pieces, the majority of which used to be painted on cardboard, now integrate other challenging materials; perspex, metal, and fabrics, but his work remains instantly recognisable with his impeccable line, complex 3D layering and bold use of paint and still retains the same immediacy and a raw energy.

His paintings used to fall into one of three categories, ranging from his coveted self portraits, complex three dimensional works and narrative, social documentary paintings.

A NEW UNDERSTANDING included important works that succesfully brought together all these elements, and gave a just a glimpse of what Adam Neate can produce in the next decade,

Art historian Ben Jones' fascinating and in depth interview with Adam Neate is published in The Elms Lesters Book, and writer William Oliver wrote an insightful profile for the book A NEW UNDERSTANDING which accompanied his most recent solo show.

Elms Lesters is the primary source of works by Adam Neate and represents him Internationally.