About Bridget Riley

English painter Bridget Louise Riley was born on April 24th in 1931 at Norwood located in the south of London, England.

Her father John Fisher Riley was a printer and as he relocated his business in 1938, the family moved to Lincolnshire. Their time there was cut short due to the WWII breaking out and her father being drafted into the army.

Bridget, her sister, mother, and aunt moved to Cornwall in 1939, trying to stay out of harm's way. Bridget spent a lot of time playing on the cliffs and beaches near Padstow and the natural scenery made an everlasting impression on her. Drawing and painting became her passion at an early age.

She attended Cheltenham Ladies College during 1946 - 1949, after which she studied at the Goldsmiths College, London, until 1952 and moved on to the Royal College of Art where she studied life drawing, mostly working in black and white until 1955.

Her study created frustration and confusion and in combination with personal problems (her father had been seriously injured in a car accident and after completing her study in 1955, she went back to Lincolnshire to look after him) led to a complete physical and mental breakdown for the aspiring artist.

It would take her a while to overcome this breakdown, but once she did, she found the path to success!

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