As a boy, Richard lived with his family in Burma, Bangladesh, India, Uganda, and Turkey, as well as spending extended time in Europe. His artistic career began with photography and jewelry-making, in college. After creating and exhibiting widely in photography, he became interested in painting. A 6-month trip to Japan in 1981-2 confirmed his interest in Japanese abstract calligraphy, and as the years went on, he also developed his use of color and texture. A recent trip to India confirmed his deepening spiritual direction. Additional interests include the art of ancient and traditional cultures, Western art, particularly abstract expressionism, archetypal imagery, ritual and spiritual growth.

The inner world is the subject of Richard Duning's work. In his drawings, paintings and mixed media pieces, Richard hints at the richness of the inner reality with images of great emotional, visual and tactile intensity. In this recent body of works on paper, he uses many layers of paint, along with carefully juxtaposed colors on the surface, creating a special glow, giving the impression that the light is coming from within the image.

All these currents come together in the work of the last few years. Richard Duning’s figure vessels hold fiery transformations in their centers; circles and squares dance, edging toward some eventual unity; opposites swirl, fighting and merging. All are suffused in light, energy and vivid color.

The above text is from excerpts from Nancy Correll’s writings on Richard Duning.