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Alessandro Raho is known for painting portraits of friends and family, seascapes, landscapes and still lives. Using fine oils, Raho’s paintings have a fresh contemporary approach and are often described as dealing with narrative, nostalgia and desire. Raho employs intricate technical processes to make his paintings luxuriously photographic and is praised for his minimalistic portraits characterized by their serene, white backgrounds. In 2004, Raho was commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery in London to paint a portrait of English actress Dame Judi Dench. Imagining Dench as a wealthy housewife, he painted her in a way that thrilled and flattered her.

Alessandro Raho (b. 1971, Nassau, Bahamas) lives and works in London. Over the past few decades, Raho's work has been shown at Alison Jacques Gallery (London, UK); Taro Nasu (Tokyo, Japan); De Brock (Knokke, Belgium); Cheim & Read (New York, USA); Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac (Paris, France) and Monica de Cardenas (Milan, Italy). His work is included in prestigious collections worldwide, such as the National Portrait Gallery (London, UK); Tate Collection (London, UK); The Museum of Modern Art (New York, USA); Seattle Museum of Art (Seattle, NY) and the Walker Art Center (Minneapolis, USA).

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Alessandro Raho

Biography

Education

  • 1989 - 1990

    Croydon College of Art, London, UK

  • 1991 - 1994

    Goldsmiths College, London, UK

Special commissions

  • 2016

    Official Portrait of Matthew Barzun, US Ambassador to the UK

  • 2005

    Portrait of Dame Judi Dench, National Portrait Gallery, London, UK

Solo Exhibitions

  • 2023

    Charles Asprey, London, UK

    Elliott Templeton Fine Arts, New York, NY, USA

  • 2022

    Galerie Nikolaus Ruzicska, Salzburg, Austria

  • 2021

    Alison Jacques, London, UK

  • 2018

    Kingsgate Project Space, London, UK

  • 2017

    Taro Nasu, Tokyo, Japan

  • 2015

    Secession, Vienna, Austria

    Alison Jacques Gallery, London, UK

    Patrick De Brock, Knokke, Belgium

  • 2012

    Alison Jacques Gallery, London, UK

  • 2011

    The Pavilion of Realism, Thomas Williams Fine Art, London, UK

  • 2009

    Effearte Gallery, Milan, Italy

  • 2008

    Ruzicska Gallery, Salzburg, Austria

    Thomas Williams Fine Art, London, UK; special exhibition curated by Charles Asprey

  • 2006

    Ruzicska Gallery, Salzburg, Austria

  • 2005

    Alison Jacques Gallery, London, UK

  • 2004

    National Portrait Gallery, London, UK; new display showing Judi Dench painting with works from the NPG collection selected by Alessandro Raho

  • 2003

    Cheim & Read, New York, NY, USA

    Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, Paris, France

  • 2002

    Taro Nasu, Tokyo, Japan

  • 2001

    Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, Salzburg, Austria

  • 2000

    aspreyjacques, London, UK

  • 1999

    Taro Nasu, Tokyo, Japan

  • 1997

    Monica de Cardenas, Milan, Italy

  • 1996

    Maureen Paley / Interim Art, London, UK

    Jay Gorney Modern Art, New York, NY, USA

  • 1995

    Rena Bransten, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Maureen Paley / Interim Art, London, UK

Public Collections

  • Portugal

    Berardo Collection, Lisbon

  • UK

    National Portrait Gallery, London

    Tate Collection, London

  • US

    The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY

    Seattle Museum of Art, Seattle, DC,

    Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN

Selected images