About Us
About Humphrey Fine Art
Humphrey Fine Art was founded in 2017 by Edward Jack Humphrey, a Fine Artist with extensive knowledge and experience in the art field. Driven by his passion for capturing imaginative and expressive portraits, Humphrey explores identity, emotion, and storytelling in his artworks.
He is an alumnus of the renowned National Art School, holding a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts, and has furthered his expertise with a Certificate IV in Arts and Cultural Administration from TAFE NSW. His notable achievements include being selected for the prestigious 2018 Salon des Refusés, becoming a finalist in the 2020 Archibald Portrait Prize, and earning recognition in the 2021 Bluethumb Art Prize.
Vision Statement
Humphrey’s vision is to contribute his creative thinking and making to the art world. He aspires to win prestigious art prizes, be selected for renowned art fairs and residencies, and showcase his work in exhibitions around the world.
Mission Statement
Humphrey's mission is to create artworks that capture personal and collective narratives, exploring themes of our environment, beauty, aesthetics, and the identity of people and culture.
Artist Statement
Creating art is my life. It’s where I can freely unleash my imagination, challenge my skills, develop new techniques, and sculpt my vision. The composition excites me, and I embrace both precision and spontaneity in my work. With every painting, I sharpen my creative process and align my vision, striving to become an influential voice in the art world.
My work explores identity, memory and beauty, blending abstraction and figuration to create portraits that feel both deeply personal and resonant. The expressive realism of Gustave Courbet, Jenny Saville, and Guy Maestri captivates me, while the psychological depth in Brett Whiteley and Ben Quilty’s work fuels my desire to release raw emotion into my subjects. I deliberately embrace imperfections, allowing abstraction and spontaneity to shape the composition.
Each artwork begins with craftsmanship. I stretch my own canvases with loom-state fabric, prime them, and layer vibrant colours for the foundation. This structured beginning allows me to become a perfectionist and break that apart. I use acrylics to quickly build tones, blocking in washes of light and shadow to create depth and form. Then, oils allow me to refine, break apart, and reconstruct the portrait, giving me time to experiment with texture and technique.
At the core of my practice, I define beauty—not as a fixed ideal, but as an evolving, imperfect process where realism and abstraction marry together. In my portraits, I want viewers to connect with the spirit and soul of each subject, feeling the weight of their emotions beyond the painted surface. What drives me as an artist is the constant cycle of innovation, development and growth. Each artwork is a step forward, a new way of seeing, understanding, and expressing.