Tony Foster (artist)


Richard Anthony Foster, known as Tony Foster, is a British artist-explorer and environmentalist who documents wilderness landscapes worldwide through his large-scale artworks created on-site. The artworks are watercolour and graphite on paper and include diary excerpts, collected souvenirs, maps, and talismans. Since 1982, Foster has completed nineteen thematically related watercolour diaries or Journeys.

Early life

Tony Foster was born in New York, Lincolnshire, England, in 1946. He trained as an art teacher and taught for seven years before serving as a Regional Arts Officer for the South West Arts Council of Great Britain. He is a self-taught artist, initially working in mixed media and silkscreen as a pop artist. Inspired by the methodology of J. M. W. Turner, and Foster's interest and passion for wildernesses and painting en plein air, he chose to focus on his own narrative observations, making art a full-time occupation at age 35.

Process

Foster works with graphite and watercolour paints and utilises the ‘en plein air’ technique. He blends 19th century British explorer traditions of making detailed notebook sketches of his travels while working in a large-scale contemporary format. Foster sketches on-site to achieve authenticity and never works from photographs because he believes a direct response is more important than photographic accuracy.
Trekking on foot, rafting, canoeing or scuba diving are some of the methods Foster employs to explore the natural landscape. He documents the experience of his travels, travelling slowly to encounter flora, fauna, people, and objects, recording it through diary notes and collected souvenirs which are essential elements of his artworks. To develop his paintings, some of which necessitate several weeks on-site, Foster frequently camps where he chooses to paint. He often contends with harsh climate conditions to complete his artworks.
Foster resolves about two-thirds of each painting on-site, leaving graphite notes on the paper for reference, then completes the work in his Cornish studio. These notes provide a revelation of his process and a record of decisions made in the field. The completed watercolour artworks include his diary entries, collected souvenirs, talismans, and maps, resulting in a visual and written record of Foster's encounters on his wilderness journeys.

Career

Since 1982, Tony Foster has travelled worldwide and painted wildernesses, creating a series of ‘watercolour diaries’. He believes in the importance of wilderness and the need to protect it.
His artworks of the American West draw comparisons to expedition artists of the early West, such as Thomas Moran and George Catlin by art historian Mindy Besaw. Art historian Duncan Robinson states Foster's work demonstrates the mastery of the centuries-old tradition of English landscape, drawing comparison to John Linnell, John Constable, and Peter De Wint.
Foster's works have resulted in several major exhibitions.

Collections

Awards

Journeys

Documentaries

The Man Who Painted Everest – follows Foster during his expedition to paint watercolours in the Mount Everest region, produced as part of his Journey "Searching for a Bigger Subject".Tony Foster: Painting at the Edge – directed by David Schendel, released in cinemas on 14 November 2025. The film uses archival footage, interviews, and images of Foster’s expeditions to chronicle his life, creative process, and wilderness painting. It features an eight‑day canoe journey down the Green River to its confluence with the Colorado River in Utah, as well as other expeditions covering the full length of the Green River, and highlights key moments from his 19 documented Journeys.

Special projects

  • Artbox is one of England's smallest art galleries, housed in a repurposed British Telecom red phone box and located streetside in Tywardreath, Cornwall. Foster, who leases the phone box from his local council for £1 per year, is Artbox's patron and founder. He regularly collaborates with Roshni Tamang Mitchell and Dana Roberts to organise and rotate community-based exhibitions. Artbox can feature the work of contemporary artists or historical figures. The first exhibition, which opened in 2019, was a tribute to 19th century John Lobb, a Tywardreath farm labourer who became a royal bootmaker.Lockdown Diary–56 Days is a visual diary of experiences that Tony Foster recorded on his daily walks from home during a British lockdown in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Foster took a new walk and painted a new subject every day while sheltering-in-place in Tywardreath, England. Foster relates that "Like John Muir, I have come to realise that anything studied intently enough will offer insights into the extraordinary variety and beauty of our world."

Books

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Personal life

He resides in Cornwall, United Kingdom, with his wife, Ann.