Becca Riley is an artist based in the North-West of the UK.

Her practice explores the relationship between the subconscious and reality, whilst investigating how the boundaries between past and present can overlap. Over dreamlike, hazy backgrounds, she brings figures to life through paint, merging memory with the physical self. Choosing vulnerable poses paired with thoughtful, tentative expressions, she aims to present an inner world for her audience.

She is interested in the way in which we cope with the pressures of day-to-day living and exploring how we return to a place in our minds where memory and reality become one. She depicts her subjects in ethereal dreamscapes, using layered oil paint and vibrant colours to create a calming yet somewhat tumultuous backdrop. Riley’s work tends to feel fictitious, as though transporting the viewer to an alternate reality formed purely upon emotion rather than physical ‘state’ of being. These figures become characters; a blend of herself and personal experiences, whilst also allowing her viewers a way into her world.