About the Artist

Alan M. Richards

Photomontages and Other Works

Statement & Short

Statement & Short Bio

My work may be classified as photomontages or new media art. The images may be playful,  satirical, or of a more serious nature.   I try to tell a story with each image. My artwork represents the human condition. It reflects how I view events and the interaction between people and the world. I seem to like scenes that are rooted in the past eras. I think what attracts me about those eras is the style of dress, what I perceive as the integrity of the individuals I include in my works, and the color palette of works I have seen depicting those eras. 

 My work is primarily based on photographic images. I either take the images myself or I use found/vintage or other  images combined with my images. The images are always unified in their appearance by using digital painting, drawing,  image clips, vectors, and CAD elements.  I enjoy the work of Edward Hopper, Rene Magritte, and David Hockney, and  see my work falling somewhere between all three artists.

I do not have a set pattern about how an image grows. I guess it is organic in that elements of the final image change over the time I'm working on the picture. Sometimes, an entire background will change or elements will be added or deleted. The end goal is to create an image with visual interest. I may start out with some notion of the potential look of the final piece, but that often changes as the piece progresses.

I look for the unusual in a person or persons or places. It's not whether a person is fat or skinny, one color or another, or any other physical attribute. It's a special aspect of an individual which makes them appear to me to be special. It's their uniqueness that attracts me.

Appreciation of art and design has always been a part of my life since both of my parents were artists. My father, a commercial artist, was influential in introducing me to advertising art and graphic design. My mother was an accomplished oil painter who studied at The Art Students League in New York City.  Although I always had an interest in artwork, I chose a different path. By profession, I became an Audiologist. I earned a Ph.D. from the City University of New York (CUNY) in Hearing Science and was a Professor of Audiology at CUNY for nearly 30 years. I also practiced privately over those years with the practice located  in the Upper East Side of Manhattan.  Although I produced artwork sporadically over my work career, it is within the last decade that the passion for creating artwork on a consistent basis has blossomed into a new career path.  I approach it with the same fervor and desire as I did in the past. 

Alan M Richards 

October, 2026