Esther Edwardes was born and raised in London. She attended the progressive and arts-focussed The King Alfred School in north London. Edwardes then obtained her Masters degree at the University of Bristol. In 2017 Edwardes joined the University of Cambridge where she completed her PhD.
At Cambridge, Edwardes continued to develop her artistic practice becoming increasingly interested in abstract form. After attending a course in Abstract Expressionism at the renowned Kettles Yard in 2018, Edwardes was inspired by the work of Richard Pousette-Dart to produce her first series – Exploration KY.
In 2021, Edwardes moved to Paris and produced a series of painted colour landscapes to emote the feeling a space produces. Simultaneously Edwardes began an in-depth study of the work of Auguste Rodin, aided by her proximity to the Musée Rodin. Edwardes produced sculpture studies initially with charcoal and then with acrylic using two-tonal colour motifs.
Resulting from her study of Rodin, Edwardes became increasingly interested in figuration in her own work. From early 2022 Edwardes attended the Academie Grande Chaumiere, studying portraiture, sculpture and life drawing. Her work currently features surreal figures developed from her own sculpture and working in a mix of media of acrylic, charcoal, pastel and oil. Movement and power is twisted into the work, creating a conscious presence, giving life to the otherwise static form. Finally, a canvassed piece is created, placing the surreal figure in frame, counterbalancing the depth and movement of the sculpted piece with the flat plane of the background, only held in place by the suggestion of shadow.
Edwardes has now moved to Manchester, where she is working on a new series.