Bridget Riley was born in Norwood, South London, in 1931 and spent much of her childhood in Cornwall during the Second World War, where she developed a deep sensitivity to nature and visual perception. Her early education included attending Cheltenham Ladies College from 1946 to 1948, where she was introduced to the history of painting by Colin Hayes. She then studied at Goldsmiths College, London (1949-1952), where life drawing classes with Sam Rabin were formative in her early art education, followed by study at the Royal College of Art from 1952 to 1955, a period marked by personal and artistic uncertainties.
From 1952 to 1955, Riley grappled with questions about her style and subject matter. Influences from modern masters such as Van Gogh, Seurat, and later Jackson Pollock, along with mentorship from Maurice de Sausmarez, helped shape her early experiments. By around 1960, she began developing her distinctive black-and-white works, including key pieces like Kiss (1961), which established her emerging optical style.
The 1960s brought Riley international recognition. Her first solo exhibition was held at Gallery One, London, in 1962. She was included in the landmark MoMA exhibition The Responsive Eye in 1965. In 1968, she became the first British contemporary painter and first woman to win the International Prize for Painting at the Venice Biennale. Around the same time, she co-founded SPACE, an organization dedicated to providing affordable studios for artists in London.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Riley's extensive travels across Europe, Japan, India, Australia, and Egypt influenced her exploration of color, light, and form. She transitioned from her earlier black-and-white works to vibrant color paintings and curvilinear compositions inspired by both classical and modern masters. Major retrospectives across Europe, the United States, and Japan solidified her reputation, and her public commissions and stage designs expanded her artistic influence.
Entering the 21st century, Riley continued evolving her visual language with curvilinear structures and large-scale wall paintings. A major retrospective at Tate Britain took place in 2003. She has received numerous honors, including the Praemium Imperiale in 2003 and the Rubens Prize in 2012. Riley is celebrated for her rigorous formal intelligence, lyrical vitality, and profound mastery of color and perception, remaining a leading figure in optical and kinetic art.