Overview

Born in Bradford in 1949, artist Sue Atkinson is the daughter of a Bradford wool merchant and attended Wakefield College of Art. She still lives in Wakefield, and paints both in her studio and on the beach at Runswick Bay, a scenic village on the Yorkshire Coast just outside Whitby. In 1999 she was South Yorkshire Artist of the Year, and has won numerous other prizes and awards.
The subjects of her paintings are generally carefully observed scenes of everyday life, such as children playing and beach scenes. Her clear affection for her native county lends a warmth and depth to her work. She’s exhibited widely, including at The royal Academy, The Royal Society of Marine Artists and the New English Art Club.

Sue Atkinson’s paintings have a magical, naive quality that appeals to a wide range of collectors and her quirky portraits and landscapes are in great demand. Whether she’s working in watercolour, oils or gouache her work is packed with life and movement and her beach paintings are especially energetic and sought after. She refers to her own work as ‘the great escape’, as it allows her to give free rein to her imagination and many of her beach and landscape paintings have an engaging feeling of space and freedom which has ensured a steady market for her work. As with all artwork, the value of Sue Atkinson paintings varies somewhat according to the media, size and subject matter. At Peter Wilson’s, our in-house expert Stephen Sparrow has years of experience in valuing and assessing Sue Atkinson’s paintings, so do get in touch if you’d like to discuss a potential sale or valuation.