Some places stay with us long after we've left them.
Those are the places I paint.

My work explores how colour, layered surfaces and atmosphere can preserve the emotional experience of place.​

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​Why I Paint Landscapes 

​A place sometimes isn't just a place. 

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If it has found its way onto one of my canvases, pieces of paper or ceramics, it's because it became significant to me. It held something—a feeling, a memory, a conversation, a moment of stillness, or a sense of hope. My paintings begin with places, but they are really about what those places gave me. 

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I love painting the Cornish coast, not simply because it is beautiful, vibrant and full of colour, but because it is where I return to find myself again. Through grief, anxiety and life's changing seasons, the sea has become a place of refuge—a place to breathe, to reflect and to simply be. 

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The same is true of my garden paintings. A walk through a garden becomes meaningful because of the people I shared it with, the conversations we had, or because it was a day when anxiety and depression loosened their grip enough for me to be there. Amongst nature, I find reminders of joy, resilience and growth—gentle encouragement to keep blooming, however quietly. 

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Whether I am painting a coastline, a garden or an everyday street, I am less interested in recording how a place looked than preserving how it felt.

 

My paintings become thank-you letters to the places that quietly looked after me when I needed them most. 

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My Process

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I build my paintings through layers of oil, acrylic, collage and printed materials, allowing each surface to evolve over time. Edges are revealed, interrupted and reworked, creating a conversation between control and chance.

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Hand-printed papers, collage, metallic leaf and expressive paint sit alongside one another, allowing each piece to evolve gradually over time. Rather than hiding the making, I allow each work to retain evidence of its own journey.

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For me, painting isn't about creating a perfect record of a place. It's about holding onto something less tangible—its atmosphere, its rhythm and the feeling of having been there.

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Artist Bio

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Alexis Rizzo is a contemporary British painter based in Surrey, inspired by the places that have quietly become part of her story.

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Working across oil, acrylic and mixed media, she creates paintings that explore memory, atmosphere and the emotional experience of place through expressive colour and layered surfaces.

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Her work has been exhibited in galleries and art fairs across London and the South East, and is held in private collections throughout the UK.

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She holds an Advanced GNVQ in Art & Design, completed an Art Foundation, and holds an HND in Theatre.

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Selected Exhibitions & Recognition​

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The Horton Summer Exhibition - Transformation

The Horton Arts Centre, Epsom (2026)

​FLORA Digital Exhibition, Nook Gallery & Studios in partnership with Vortic (2026)

Kingston Artists (2025)

Landmark Art Fairs, Teddington (2024–Present)

Moving Art, Robert Phillips Gallery, Walton on Thames (2024)

Winning Gallery, Hampton Court (2024)

Molesey Art Society, Surrey (2023–Present)

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Selected Awards & Shortlists

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​Terence Cuneo Acrylic Painting Award, Molesey Art Society — Hurst Park Workers (2022)
Shortlisted for the Richmond Art Prize — In a Richmond State of Mind (2025)​