Leonard Benson was born in 1947 in Hobart, Tasmania and spent his early years as a draftsman for the Public Service. His meticulous attention to design that is a feature of his work stems from this period. He began to seriously paint and exhibit in 1990.

Leonard consciously avoided the academic approach offered by the art school and instead studied with the Danish Artist Kurt Olsson.

Initially influenced by the Italian Artist Modigliani, Leonard concentrates on the female form, minimalising his images while still retaining their strong emotional content.

His exhibition in 1991 titled “Between Caricature and Portraiture” was reviewed by the Hobart Mercury’s Art Critic, Joerg Anderch who wrote “some artists seem to battle the world and finally after spending decades on self improvement are granted the privilege of joining an elite group of fellow toilers, alas then comes someone like Benson who has cornered all the ingredients others so painstakingly searched for”.

This exhibition titled “Black and Blue’ shows off the sophistication of this minimalisation while still retaining the female as its subjects focus. This approach has enabled him to make as much use of the negative shapes as it does of the positives. The simplicity in the design is also carried through to the colour scheme, predominately black and blue to enhance the images.

Leonard continues to grow as an artist and explore his own unique vision.