Francesco Conti
I grew up on the outskirts of Rome and later lived in the United States, where I became attuned to how a sense of isolation lay beneath quiet suburbs, well-kept lawns, and neat buildings. When I moved back to London, I found the same feeling - hidden in the forgotten edges of the city, in old buildings, along industrial canals, and in spaces that carry the memory of lives once lived there.
My work often circles around the idea of urban alienation - the loneliness, beauty, and tension found in places shaped by human presence but now left half-empty or overlooked.
I mainly work with acrylic, drawn to its layering properties and precision - perhaps reflecting my background in science. Sometimes I use oil to explore different textures and atmospheres.
In my paintings, I’m drawn to buildings with few or no people. I find that when human presence fades, the structures themselves come to life, as if the stillness allows their own voices to be heard. It's a little like walking into the woods: at first, everything falls silent, but if you stay long enough, you begin to hear the hidden sounds of the forest, or even the beat of your own heart. I particularly like to paint at night, and I think that’s when I naturally tune in to those inner feelings and voices.
As a child, when I drew houses, I gave them faces - windows for eyes, doors for mouths. That feeling stayed with me, and I still see buildings that way now, as if they are alive. There’s a faint unease that lingers in them, but I believe even the most neglected places hold a kind of beauty once we stop and pay attention.
Solo Shows
June 2025 – The Art Space, Kingston, London
2020 – The Art Space, Cass Art, Hampstead, London
2020 – All or Nothing, Nude Tin Can Gallery, St Albans
2020 – The Art Space, Cass Art, Hampstead, London
Selected Group Exhibitions
2025 – NEAC Annual Exhibition, Mall Galleries, London (upcoming)
2025 – Royal Society of British Artists Annual Exhibition, Mall Galleries, London
2024 – ING Discerning Eye, Mall Galleries, London
2024 – Green & Stone Summer Exhibition, London
2024 – Townhouse Open, London
2022 – ING Discerning Eye, Mall Galleries, London (Limassol Marina, sold)
2020 – The Seventh View, C24 Gallery, New York City
2019 – ING Discerning Eye, Mall Galleries, London
Education & Training
PhD in Molecular Biology (Cancer Research UK / King’s College London)
Artistic training: self-taught and through workshops or evening classes -e.g Scuola di Arti Ornamentali (Rome) and Watts Atelier (USA)
Committed to ongoing development through selected artist workshops
Prizes & Awards
2023 – Daler Rowney Award, TALP Open
2021 – Best of Acrylics publication – AcrylicWorks 8
Gallery Affiliation
2020–2021 – Nude Tin Can Gallery, St Albans (closed due to lockdown)