Julie Cross is a contemporary figurative painter exploring the human figure, with a particular focus on the cultural representation of women and the enduring influence of classical myth. Her work combines carefully observed form with luminous colour fields and abstract spatial structures, balancing realism and abstraction, myth and contemporary voice. Through a symbolic language of organic, often circular forms, her paintings create spaces of ambiguity in which the figure emerges, dissolves and asserts presence.

 

Living and working in Yorkshire, Julie has a PhD in Children's Literature and an MA in History of Art. Her practice is informed by both regular life drawing and a longstanding interest in storytelling, gesture and human interaction. She exhibits widely across the UK and is an elected member of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours. Her work is regularly shown at the Mall Galleries, London, and she has received numerous awards for her work, including the Harold Riley Sketchbook Prize, the Schmincke Award at the Pastel Society annual exhibition and the Dry Red Press Award from the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours.