The Artists
Chosen by collectors who could choose anything.
Curated artist by artist over nine years of gallery ownership. The Ridgwell Collection brings together the artists we personally selected, championed and came to believe in.
Their work stopped people in their tracks, started conversations and found its way into remarkable collections. We chose each for originality, established pedigree and the unmistakable presence of their work.
Danni Bradford
Contemporary Verre-églomisé Artist
GLASS ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2026 GLOBAL AWARDS · DSWF WILDLIFE ARTIST OF THE YEAR FINALIST · EXHIBITED AT LONDON HEATHROW T5
Danni Bradford is an award-winning contemporary artist specialising in Verre-églomisé, the rare heritage craft of reverse painting and gilding on glass. Working with 24ct gold, silver and copper leaf, she creates luminous works inspired by wildlife and the natural world.
Her accolades include Glass Artist of the Year 2026, South West Contemporary Artist of the Year 2022 and recognition through the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation’s Wildlife Artist of the Year. Her work has been selected for London Craft Week and the Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition, and is held in private collections internationally, including the UK, USA, Saudi Arabia, France, Belgium, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Singapore and Kenya.
Dale Bowen
British painter and master potter
MASTER POTTER FOR COALPORT AND WEDGWOOD · HIS WORK PRESENTED TO HM QUEEN ELIZABETH II · EXHIBITED IN NEW YORK, SAN FRANCISCO AND JAPAN
Dale Bowen’s richly textured paintings draw on a career spanning both fine art and ceramics. Before establishing himself as a painter, he worked as a master potter for Coalport China and Wedgwood, later gaining a master’s degree in ceramics from Staffordshire University.
His ceramic commissions include works for Coalport’s 250th anniversary, the Queen Mother’s 100th birthday celebrations and the bicentenary of the Battle of Trafalgar, for which he created a commemorative plaque presented to HM Queen Elizabeth II aboard HMS Victory.
His work has been exhibited internationally, including New York, Washington, San Francisco and Japan, with ceramic work also exhibited in museums in the UK, USA and Japan.
Helen Gee
Award-winning international wildlife artist
WORK HELD IN ARISTOCRATIC AND INTERNATIONAL COLLECTIONS · DISTINCTIVE PAINTINGS CREATED ON METALLIC LEAF
Helen Gee is an artist specialising in distinctive wildlife paintings created on metallic leaf. Working from a Tudor manor on the banks of the River Severn, Helen draws inspiration from both the animals surrounding her at home and a lifetime of travel.
With strong connections to Yorkshire and the heather-clad moors where she grew up, her influences range much further afield, from Luxor to Virginia. Animals, their individual characters and personalities remain at the heart of her work, which is held in private and aristocratic collections in the UK and internationally
Charlotte Elizabeth Lane
British contemporary landscape artist
THEATRE ROYAL DRURY LANE · ENGLISH NATIONAL OPERA · LONDON 2012 OLYMPIC CEREMONIES · EXHIBITED IN LOS ANGELES AND SINGAPORE
Charlotte Elizabeth Lane began her career as an apprentice scenic artist at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, developing her craft painting large-scale scenery for theatre, opera and ballet. Her subsequent career included work connected with major West End theatres, English National Opera, international musical tours and the London 2012 Olympic opening and closing ceremonies.
Now a contemporary painter, Charlotte creates expressive landscapes inspired by the natural world. Her work has been exhibited internationally, including Los Angeles and Singapore, as well as across the UK.
Recent exhibitions include Artplex Gallery, Los Angeles, Cotswold Contemporary Art and Holt Gallery, following earlier solo exhibitions in Singapore.
David Henty
Master Copyist and former art forger
REAL LIFE INSPIRATION BEHIND PETER JAMES’S PICTURE YOU DEAD · FEATURED BY BBC RADIO 4, CHANNEL 4, VICE AND GB NEWS · COLLECTED BY PROMINENT FIGURES ACROSS SPORT, POLITICS, POLICING AND THE MEDIA.
For more than 25 years, David Henty has mastered the techniques of celebrated artists including Lowry, Picasso, Modigliani, Caravaggio, Van Gogh, Monet and Basquiat. His unconventional career began following a conviction for passport forgery and a prison sentence, during which his fascination with painting developed. Today, his accomplished recreations are created and sold openly under his own name.
David’s story and technical knowledge helped inspire Daniel Hegarty, the master art forger in Peter James’s Roy Grace novel Picture You Dead. During James’s research, David created the supposedly lost Fragonard at the heart of the story and demonstrated techniques a sophisticated forger might employ.
Picture You Dead was subsequently adapted for the stage, with David’s paintings appearing in the production and actor Peter Ash portraying Hegarty, the character inspired by him.
Martyn Dempsey
Contemporary Cornish artist with an international following
COLLECTED BY ED SHEERAN AND LAURENCE LLEWELYN-BOWEN · WORK HELD IN ARISTOCRATIC COLLECTIONS · FORNACIAI ART GALLERY FLORENCE
For more than two decades, Martyn Dempsey has built an established career as a contemporary artist in Cornwall, developing a loyal following among collectors in Britain and internationally.
Originally self-taught, Martyn went on to study contemporary abstract painting in St Ives before completing a three-year fine art programme at Studio d’Arte Toscanella in Florence. He now works from his studio near Zennor, drawing inspiration from the Cornish landscape and its remarkable modernist heritage.
Martyn has exhibited in the UK and internationally, including Melbourne, London and Florence. His paintings have appeared in publications including The Guardian, Homes & Gardens, Period Living and 25 Beautiful Homes, and he has been interviewed by the BBC and BBC Radio 4.
His work has attracted collectors in Britain and overseas, with an original work acquired by Ed Sheeran.
Emma Haines
Contemporary British wildlife artist
COMMISSIONED BY PETER JONES TO PAINT TIGER WOODS AND STEPHEN MIRON · COLLECTED BY JOHN TERRY · PAINTED IN THE PRESENCE OF HRH THE PRINCESS ROYAL · AWARD WINNING ILLUSTRATOR
Emma Haines is a British artist whose richly textured paintings are driven by a lifelong fascination with wildlife, horses and the natural world. Working in heavy-bodied acrylics and layers of translucent glaze, she creates energetic paintings full of movement and character.
Emma was commissioned by Peter Jones of Dragons’ Den to create a portrait as a 60th-birthday gift for media executive Stephen Miron depicting his game of golf with Tiger Woods and has participated in two major events for Jones. At one of these, a painting was acquired by former England football captain John Terry.
In July 2026, Emma was invited to paint live at a Royal event in London, creating a painting of a mounted Guardsman in the presence of HRH The Princess Royal.
Giles Ward
Contemporary natural world and sea life artist
INTERNATIONALLY EXHIBITED · COMMISSIONED FOR PRIVATE HOMES, HOTELS AND RESTAURANTS · DISTINCTIVE MARINE PAINTINGS
Giles Ward is a British artist known for extraordinarily tactile paintings inspired by fish, crustaceans and marine life.
Predominantly working in oils, he builds his surfaces with acrylics, inks, varnishes and unconventional natural materials — including sawdust, thread and even crab shell — creating richly layered works in which his subjects appear almost to emerge from the canvas.
Much of Giles’s inspiration comes directly from the sea and its markets, transforming shimmering scales, translucent shells and the extraordinary detail of marine life into distinctive contemporary paintings.
Giles has exhibited throughout the UK and internationally, developing a worldwide following for his distinctive work. Alongside his gallery practice, he has created bespoke pieces for private homes, restaurants, hotels and commercial interiors.
David Morgan
Established British landscape artist
MORE THAN 20 YEARS OF EXHIBITIONS, SOLO SHOWS AND MAJOR ART FAIRS
David Morgan is an established Devon landscape artist known for his bold, richly textured oil paintings and distinctive use of impasto.
Painting en plein air, David works directly within the landscape, responding instinctively to changing weather, light and atmosphere. The sky sets the mood, followed by vigorous layers of colour and texture that capture the land and sea beneath it. Whenever possible, he completes a painting in a single sitting.
With an exhibition career spanning more than twenty years, David’s work has featured in solo exhibitions, group shows and major art fairs, developing an established following among collectors. His subjects range from Dartmoor and the River Dart to the Devon and Cornish coastline, capturing the shifting skies, moving water and fleeting light of the British landscape.
Polly Skye
GUEST ARTIST TO THE RIDGWELL COLLECTION · MORE THAN A DECADE OF GALLERY EXHIBITIONS · WORK HELD IN PRIVATE COLLECTIONS INTERNATIONALLY
West Country artist Polly Skye creates vibrant impressionistic paintings inspired by the changing coast and countryside. Working in oils and acrylics, her distinctive use of colour, light and fragmented brushwork brings movement and atmosphere to her work.
Polly has run her own gallery in Lynton, North Devon for over ten years, with her paintings now held in private collections internationally.
Margaret Johnson
British mixed-media artist and glass designer
FINE ART AND SCULPTURE AT GOLDSMITHS · REPRESENTED BY GALLERIES ACROSS THE UK · DISTINCTIVE MIXED MEDIA WORKS
Margaret Johnson studied Fine Art and Sculpture at Goldsmiths College, London, before developing her own artistic practice from her studio in Exeter, Devon.
Her distinctive work combines straw-silk fibres, handmade papers and gold and silver leaf to create richly layered, luminous surfaces. Inspired particularly by water and marine life, her paintings explore colour, movement and the shimmer of shoals of fish.
With an established exhibition history and work represented by galleries across the UK, Margaret’s practice encompasses both mixed-media paintings and decorative glass vessels.
For The Ridgwell Collection, Margaret presents a selection of her gold and silver-leaf paintings and decorative vases.
