- Conrad Leach
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Conrad Leach 
Conrad Leach with his BS1Born 22 November 1965
Canterbury, KentNationality UK Occupation Artist, motorcycle customizer Website conradleach.com Conrad Leach (born 22 November 1965 in Canterbury, Kent) is a British artist and custom motorcycle designer.
Contents
Early life
Born in Canterbury, Kent, on 22 November 1965 to Beverley and Valerie Leach. Educated at Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys (Canterbury), Ravensbourne College of Art and Design (Chislehurst), and Middlesex Polytechnic (née Hornsey School of Art, Cockfosters).[1]
Work
Conrad Leach in 2008
Conrad Leach worked for 15 years in the fashion industry, at the Burton Group, Dr Martens, and Harvey Nichols.[2]
1997: Leach began painting full-time on large-scale acrylic canvases. His subjects were drawn from the world of film, television and music - iconic figures he felt had influenced his stylistic aesthetic.[3]
2000: His first exhibition was at The Alphabet Bar in Soho, London in 2000, followed shortly by a solo show, 'Players', with the newly formed APART Gallery in Portobello Road, London.
2001: He became 'artist in residence' at CELUX (a division of the L.V.M.H. group based in Tokyo),[4] where he showed annually until 2007. He was also commissioned to produce a series of large-scale images for the excavation machinery manufacturer J.C.B. This group of work is now hanging in the J.C.B. world headquarters in Rocester, UK.
2005: Leach made a series of images of Norwegian cultural icons to hang in the Grand Hotel in Oslo as part of Norway's 100 year anniversary of independence. The pre-show launch was presented at the British Embassy. His image of writer Henrik Ibsen is now the visual identity for the Ibsen Museum in Oslo.
2008: New representation at Cafegroove in Tokyo. He debuted large-scale motorcycle-related canvases at Legend of the Motorcycle Concours dElegance at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Half Moon Bay, California, and was commissioned to produce two canvases for the newly opened Grosvenor Estate project in Yoyogi Park, Tokyo.
2009: New representation in the UK at the Gauntlett Gallery, Pimlico Road, London.
2010: Leach's long-time association with vintage motorcycles inspires the design of the 'BS1', a Harley-Davidson Sportster engined custom motorcycle, which was built by Cro Custom of Los Angeles, California. The 'BS1' debuts at the Quail Motorcycle Gathering, Carmel Valley, California.[5]
Notes
- ^ Rolling Stone #8, November 2008, 'Conrad Leach' artist interview and biography
- ^ Rolling Stone magazine, September 1994, 'Masters of the Game', interview.
- ^ Legends of the Motorcycle #3, May 2008, 'Conrad Leach' artist biography
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytY9rxByJxU
- ^ http://www.quaillodgeevents.com/pages/home.cgi?srvid=15
References
External links
Categories:- 1965 births
- Living people
- People from London
- People from Canterbury
- Motorcycle builders
- British artists
- Contemporary artists
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