OPEN EXHIBITION 2025 REMINDER #2: Other National Art Societies

This is the third of my posts this week about annual open exhibitions of leading national art societies and how you can improve your chances of selling your art.

This post is about the "other" national art societies:

• The Royal Scottish Academy of Art and Architecture
• The Royal Hibernian Academy of Arts

and the "other" specialist art societies - also exhibiting at the Mall Galleries in 2025

• Society of Graphic Fine Art
• Society of Women Artists
• Society of Botanical Artists

This follows on from my first two posts which were:

• OPEN EXHIBITION 2025 REMINDER #1: (Mall Galleries) - about the call for enries for the open annual exhibitions  by FBA Societies held at the Mall Galleries between January and June 2025
• Pricing your art for Open Exhibitions - a review of a sample of exhibition metrics for 2024 - about what past performance on sales at the annual exhibitions held by FBA Societies on 2025. 

The second post - about pricing - provides some invaluable information about sales in relation to prices across all the FBA societies. It's of much relevance to those submitting artwork for ALL open exhibitions at the Mall Galleries

OTHER NATIONAL ART SOCIETIES

The Royal Scottish Academy of Art and Architecture | RSA Annual Exhibition 

• Website: https://www.royalscottishacademy.org/
• Call for Entries: https://royalscottishacademy.oess1.uk/Home/Index/575 
• Regulations: https://www.royalscottishacademy.org/usr/library/documents/main/ox_art_regulations_25_1.pdf
• Open Art FAQs
• International Exhibitor information
• Deadline for Entries: 5pm on 6th February 2025
• Exhibition: 3rd May - 8th June
• Venue: Royal Scottish Academy
• Who can enter: Any artist aged 18 or over may enter, from anywhere in the world.
• What can you enter:
• up to TWO works in any size and in any fine art media.
• Original prints are encouraged but reproductions are not
• all work muse be a living artist and completed in the last 8 years
• all work must be for sale
• NOT previously exhibited in London
• Framed and unframed works are accepted. Latter must be supplied with hanging instructions
• Not Eligible for Entry: 
• No reproductions of original work and 
• no works that have previously been exhibited at the RSA, or any other exhibition in the RSA building,
• Pricing: 
• price of art on submission form is the wall price ie price paid by buyer
• minimum price of £300
• Prints only – framed £180, unframed £120
• 40% commission + VAT charged on all sales
• Entry Fee: 
• Standard: £20 per artwork for a maximum of 2 artworks
• Young person under 26 / Student / Recent Graduate: £10 per artwork for a maximum of 2 artworks
• Hanging Fee: a £10 hanging fee must be paid online at Pre-selection or on delivery of the work in cash.
• Delivery: 
• Artists may not hand in different or substitute works to those that have been pre-selected. 
• Works must be unwrapped before handing to RSA staff and all packing must be removed from the gallery. 
• Work will not be received outside the stated hours.
• Reasons to enter:
• the largest and longest-running annual exhibition of contemporary art and architecture in Scotland
• pre-eminent exhibition for all Scottish artists
• longer exhibition than other national art societies (although not as long as the RA's equivalent of the Summer Exhibition)

Pricing your art for Open Exhibitions - a review of a sample of exhibition metrics for 2024

This is all about how to sell the art that gets selected for an open exhibition by a national art society.

One of the ways in which artists can promote their art is by being selected for an open exhibition by a national art society. 

However, they help their profiles enormously and enhance their case for membership of a national art society if they can also demonstrate that their artwork is not only good enough to exhibit - but it also sells!

I personally find it very frustrating every time I visit an exhibition is to see good art which is overpriced - and which I know will not sell.

None of what I say applies to any artist who is not dependent on their artwork selling to have a normal life. If you have independent means, you can price however you like.

By way of contrast, what I say is crucial to the understanding of those artists who "need to know" how to achieve sales i.e. study the marketplace, what's on offer and what the price competition looks like.

UPDATE 31 December 2024: This post has now been UPDATED with reference to artists who sold more than one artwork - providing summary details of the type of art and prices of sold artwork.

Why artists get prices for their art wrong

Artists are very invested in their art. They often price in an unsound way which reflects motivations which have nothing whatsoever to do with selling art. 

The reasons for getting the price wrong are:

• thinking too much about the hours and effort put into a painting and not enough about whether that's marketable
• not visiting an annual open exhibition in advance of submitting an entry
• not observing the prices of the work which has sold - when your research can be done online
• not looking at last year's exhibition online - and noting the price bands where there are few sales
• not reading this blog! I've been banging on and on about the need to tailor prices to the marketplace for specific art galleries. 
• specifically in relation to the FBA Societies at the Mall Galleries
• specifically in relation to pricing just below and not just above important threshold prices i.e. the level at which people start thinking "No" rather than "Yes" 

Bottom line, your art is only worth an "inflated price" if you can find somewhere where it will sell at that price. Otherwise it's just numbers on a label and a painting which will be returned to you unsold.

I can by the way spot all the artists who have been reading this blog and have adjusted their prices and are now selling again after a fairly rough marketplace in recent times. :) 

While writing this post, I also noticed an awful lot of artists who used to sell well on a regular basis who are no longer doing so. Time maybe to review their strategy for getting their artwork sold?

2024 Annual Exhibition Sales Metrics by FBA Societies

Below you will find charts of sales at the 2024 annual exhibitions of the art societies who belong to the Federation of British Artists based at the Mall Galleries i.e.

• Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours
• Royal Institute of Oil Painters
• Royal Society of British Artists
• New English Art Club
• Royal Society of Portrait Painters
• Pastel Society
• Royal Society of Marine Artists
• Society of Wildlife Artists

Each chart is the exact same size - which helps make each comparable with the others. However the numbers of sales by members/associate members and those selected via the open entry are

• identified by price range in which they sold 
• with a coloured column each for member artists and open entry artists
• with an additional total column for all sales in each price range

UPDATE 31.12.24.: I'm also adding in - under each chart - the names of artists who sold well (as in 2 or more sales) in the 2024 exhibitions. It is possible to identify the TYPE of art which can sells well. Of which more in the future....

Who are the buyers at the Mall Galleries?

I started characterising buyers at the Mall Galleries as being essentially "middle class, middle aged and middle income" some years ago. 

• They typically like buying artwork priced at less than £1,500 - and they like it even more if it is priced at less than a £1,000. 
• You should bear this in mind as you review the charts and commentary below and as you check the profiles of the price ranges of artwork sold in the charts below

Essentially annual exhibitions at the Mall Galleries are about affordable art for most of those who visit, view and buy art.

Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours

They exhibited 450 artworks and sold 87 paintings (19%).

• members sold 47
• open entrants sold 40
• The top priced painting was £3,250

No open artist sold a painting for more than £1,000. 

There were a LOT of sales priced under £1000 with specific hot prices such as £650 and £450. Interestingly

• open artists dominated the below £500 category
• members dominated the £501-£1000 category

Unsurprisingly, watercolours are considered to be more affordable artwork - so long as artists produce suitable sizes and prices for them to be considered affordable. When they do, they sell like hot cakes!

Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours
Annual Exhibition Sales Metrics - number sold by price range and type of artist

Artists who did well include:

• Member: Matthew Phinn RI RSMA - 2 x landscape paintings @ £1,700 and £550
• Member: Paul Talbot-Greaves RI - all landscape paintings 2 x £400 and 3 x £750
• Member: Hannah Woodman RI - two watercolour and gouache landscape paintings @£3,250 and £1,950
• Member: Geoffrey Wynne RI - all landscape paintings priced under £2000, sold 4 including 3 at £850
• Open Entry: Miranda Brookes - sold two landscapes at £650 each
• Open Entry: Sandra Doyle - sold two botanical art paintings (£750 and £425), which she could have sold again and again!
• Open Entry: Julia Groves - 2 x flower paintings @ £870 each
• Open Entry: Kate Osbourne - sold 2 x watercolour and gouache paintings about allotments @ £395 each
• Open Entry: Jian Yuan Ong - sold 2 @£400

Note the theme re subject matter?

SEE ALSO: RI Annual Exhibition 2023: Analysis of art sales metrics and pricing artwork for the future

Royal Institute of Oil Painters

OPEN EXHIBITION 2025 REMINDER #1: (Mall Galleries)

I'm publishing a list of summaries of ALL the current Calls for Entries for Open Exhibitions by the National Art Societies in the UK and Ireland which have been published to date.

#1 TODAY: I'm publishing the first half of the list - about the national art societies based at the Mall Galleries who have exhibitions in the period January - June 2025.

#2 TOMORROW: I'm going to show you how well non members do at selling artwork at some of the Mall Galleries exhibitions IF:

1. they get selected
2. they price their work correctly
3. You may be very surprised! I'll be speculating on the reasons why....

#3 TUESDAY: I'll publish the second half of my list - of other national art societies and major art competitions.

Calls for Entries by FBA Societies 

Being exhibited in an important national exhibition is an excellent way of marketing yourself and your art. I've seen a lot of amateur artists develop into professional artists and become officers of leading national art societies in the nearly 20 years that I've been writing this blog. 

However, I've been remiss about writing Calls for Entries posts of late - so this is by way of making up for this.

Below are SUMMARIES of various Calls for Entries by Annual Exhibitions by all the national art societies which are members of the Federation of British Artists. 

• Their exhibitions are all held at the Mall Galleries 
• They are all holding exhibitions in the period January - June 2025
• This is the page where you can find all the Open Calls for Entries 

(Note: not all who hold exhibitions at the Mall Galleries are members of the FBA)

My summaries are NEVER a substitute for you reading ALL the Terms and Conditions of Entries very carefully. I've provided links to where you can read these below.

• You can get selected and then not hung if you mess up. 
• Pay particular attention to 
• delivering artwork and its presentation for exhibition and 
• VAT before entering or pricing. (see note at end)

Royal Society of British Artists

Royal Society of British Artists
 Open Call for Entries - Annual Exhibition 2025

• Website: https://www.therba.org/
• Call for Entries: https://www.mallgalleries.org.uk/open-calls/royal-society-british-artists
• Deadline for Entries: Wednesday 8 January 2025
• Exhibition: 26 February - 8 March 2025
• Venue: Mall Galleries
• Who can enter: Any artist aged 18 or over may enter, from anywhere in the world.
• What can you enter:  
• Painting, sculpture, drawing and original prints.
• nothing larger than 2.4m (longest dimension)
• all work must be for sale
• NOT previously exhibited in London
• original creation of the artist
• Pricing: 
• minimum price of £300 
• Prints only – framed £180, unframed £120
• 45% commission + VAT charged on all sales
• Entry Fee: 
• non-refundable submission fee of £20 per work 
• £14 per work for any artists aged 35 or under

Reasons to enter:

• lots of prizes - many of which are awarded to open artists
• RBA has a strong commitment to favouring the development of young artists

Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours | 213th Exhibition 2025

All that glitters is not gold!

A thought struck me this morning as I pondered the racks of clothing items for sale - particularly the stuff with gold sequins sewn on! It struck me as very relevant to art as well. 

When you visit sales, what's on offer is very often all the items that didn't sell very well. 

Below were observations this morning - related to clothing. 

• all the very loud colours - the colours that you can spot from 50-100 feet away! Dayglo is an especially hard sell!
• all the really boring colours - the ones which make you disappear into 'neutral' walls (there was a wall of pale grey tops against a pale grey wall)
• anything which is too dominating (gold sequins anyone?)
• the very small sizes (they're often overly optimistic that the young things that are that size will shop in the same stores as me - and I'm 70!)
• the very big sizes (they still don't realise that while it's good to offer bigger sizes, it's stupid to do this for clothing that simply does not suit bigger people!)
• the special offer at a very high price - which never sold and still doesn't sell even thought they've halved the price
• too old fashioned / too contemporary - either end frequently do badly

Lots of gold sequins - UNSOLD!

Tips for Artists

If you think about it, this recipe for leftovers on the shop floor is not that dissimilar to the observations one might make at an end of an exhibition.

Very often, to make a sale you have to make people happy. They cannot walk away and ignore something they really like. I've lost count of the number of times I've thought "I would have bought that - too!" for items which have already got a red dot.

I find that what often gets left on the wall are:

"Look at me" artwork

• paintings in very bright and/or dayglo colours
• any subject matter which is very "look at me" - which is not what you want on most domestic walls because of the potential for headaches
• paintings which are far too big for most domestic settings

"Don't look at me"

• paintings which look very insipid because they are so muted
• paintings where you notice the frame more than the painting
• everything that's just plain boring (the opposite of "look at me")

Market and product prices - out of sync

• ALL the paintings which are overpriced
• ALL the paintings which are in the wrong exhibition / wrong location
• most of the paintings which looks the same as most of the other paintings i.e. they lack a clear and individual style which is attractive rather than outlandish

Next time you're in an exhibition

Here's what I do:

• walk round the exhibition
• note what has sold
• sit down and describe the characteristics of what has sold in simple visual terms + price

Next review what's left on the walls. 

• See if you can pick out the artwork which is very unlikely to sell to those that will see it.

FINALLY - Check back online after the exhibition has finished and see if your observations and assumptions match up with what has happened in reality.

I get very consistent patterns in most exhibitions I visit. 

Plus I also see lots of very good paintings which should be walking off the walls - but for the fact that the artist has not researched the market re pricing.

More new ways to paint a live model

I'd like to say this was my idea - but it's not! Alix Baker felt that people might like a little light relief after the rather intense post PAOTY Final / Commissions and my recent three posts commenting on what happened.

Here's some really original art - relating to drawing/painting a sitter - and it's very definitely novel! Eclectic even.... I'm very taken with the very first drawing we see.

Duck Drawing by Shaun the Sheep

Here's the video

For those of you not familiar with Shaun the Sheep, you can read more about this Aardman character and his films and tv series and various other creative outlets!

This short episode was taken from the Mossy Bottom Farm shorts Series

VIDEO demonstrations by members of the American Watercolor Society

For those making lists of "things to watch" over the Seasonal Break, I have a list of videos for watercolour artists - and those interested in how watercolour paintings are created.

I've just discovered that the American Watercolor Society has some "free to air" hour long videos of AWS members giving a demonstration and talk on the AWS Watercolor Evenings which are "a highlight of each International Exhibition".  They're held in the room at the Salmagundi Club in New York where they hold their International Exhibition each year. (Note: The Salmagundi Club was created in 1871 and is one of the oldest arts organisations in the USA)

AWS Demonstrations on YouTube: Lots of useful tips

You can find links to all the demonstrations on the website under Demos. Whether or not you like the American style of watercolour, these are people who have been painting for a long time and have lots of useful tips!

Do also bear in mind these are paintings produced in an hour while delivering a talk!

I've included links to the artists' websites in their names - so you can go and take a look at more considered and finished paintings

• 2024:  “Painting Beyond Technique” with Antonio Masi, AWS, DF. 
• View here.
• you can find a summary of the talk in the newsletter
• Antonio Masi is a multi award winning artist who is the current President of the AWS and became President in 2017.
• 2023: “Reflections on Urban Landscapes” with John Salminen, AWS, DF. 
• View here.
• This one has had over 200k views so far
• He is a much exhibited artist who has many awards.
• 2022 “Watercolor from Within” with Barbara Nechis, AWS. 
• View here. It's had 89k views to date
• Past Faculty Member of the Pratt Institute who has taught all over the US.
• 2021 “Creating Drama” with Tim Saternow, AWS. 
• View here

He paints large architectural landscape watercolors with a thick use of watercolor paint, playing with the tension between the illusions of depth, carefully drawn linear perspective, and an obvious play on the surface of the paper through watermarks, paint runs, blooms and spatters. (From Tim's website)

• 2019 “Finding Beauty in Places Often Overlooked” with James Maria, AWS. 
• View here.
• He likes to paint all the various different textures in left behind half forgotten places.
• 2018 Evening I “In a Fog – Capturing the Elusive Feeling of Misty Weather” with Joel Popadics, AWS. 
• View here. (30 minutes video)
• Joel has received numerous national awards - and loves painting fog!
• 2018 Evening II “Loosen Up! – Breaking Away from Seeing and Painting Too Many Details” with Andy Evansen, AWS. 
• View here. (30 minutes video)
• Interesting to see who has inspired him....

Choosing a ‘style’ was not difficult, as Andy was always inspired by the watercolor paintings of British artists Trevor Chamberlain, David Curtis, Ed Seago and Edward Wesson, among others.

AWS International Exhibitions

Every year, the AWS holds a juried exhibition of watercolors from artists throughout the world and some UK watercolourists have done well there. Notably Angus McEwan.

View submission information on the upcoming 2025 Exhibition here.

Although please note the deadline has passed because....

The artists selected for the 158th International Exhibition in 2025 have been recently announced and you can find the list of names of those selected here

A Critique of the PAOTY Series 2024

The level of concern expressed  this year about the outcome of Portrait Artist of the Year prompts thoughts about 

• how much this relates to the artists - and 
• how much to the programme format; the objective of the programme; guidelines and criteria for assessment and the actual judging.

As a result, I've decided to do an extra 'final' post this year - about the way in which Portrait Artist of the Year works and to highlight some serious concerns.

The Final: final portraits

The programme formula - and Judges - have now remained the same for over 10 years. In my opinion it's no longer "up to snuff"in terms of:

• PAOTY Formula and format: about the participants, the design and format of the competition
• Objectives, Criteria and Judging: 
• the clarity of the judging criteria - and its communication to contestants
• the rigour expected of the judging
• the relevant expertise of the judges - in comparison to other shows
• Conduct of the Competition & Duty of Care / Wellbeing - expectations about the conduct of such competitions and regulatory compliance
• OFCOM and informed consent
• Guidelines and Policies about Duty of Care to support Participants
• Risk management and mitigation measures

So let's get down to business.... This has been a marathon and this post is a long one - for which I do not apologise - but you might want to go and make yourself a cup of tea first!

(PS I could probably write the short version in a couple of days - because, as they say, the short version takes longer! I might come back and provide a synopsis up front)

PAOTY Formula and Format

Is it really a show about an art competition? Or is it an entertainment programme?

It certainly has heats, heat winners and a final and a winner - but does it work the way other such programmes work on television?

The participants

One of the reasons people got very agitated by the result of PAOTY 11 was that a very established professional artist who has exhibited internationally and been selected five times for the BP Portrait Award and was producing good portraits which had been praised by the Judges was deemed to not be as good as a young artist who only took up portrait painting very recently.

It was felt to be grossly unfair as it felt like the decision was a whim (of which more later - under Criteria and Judging)

If there is anything more guaranteed to deter professional portrait artists from taking part then that is it. 

I've noticed how the calibre of participant has deteriorated over the course of the last 11 years.  Indeed in some years, it's been very apparent that the competition while not lacking entries has lacked enough people of the right calibre. Could the number of entries be influenced by what happens in the show and how it is judged? I think that's very likely.

• Back at the beginning it attracted members of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters (RP) - but now we only get amateurs who have been selected from the open entry for the RP Annual Exhibition. 
• For years I've been highlighting that those who were after fame and a boost for their CV who said they were "professional artists" were nothing of the sort. (Not that I say so explicitly but the clues are there)
• Interestingly during that time it has ignored very competent portrait painters in heats who have subsequently become members of the RP

One of the aspects which distinguishes PAOTY from other shows is that others specifically stipulate that if you are a professional you cannot take part. In other words, if you make serious money from the activity covered by the programme, then you cannot take part.

Why visit the William Morris Gallery?

The William Morris Gallery is located in Walthamstow and:

• holds an archive of material related to the William Morris, the English textile designer, poet, artist, writer, and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts movement.
• currently has an exhibition which relates how the art of the Islamic World influenced Morris's design thinking

I highly recommend a visit. We visited William Morris & Art from the Islamic World last Friday.  Both the exhibition and the archive of material about his life and work of various kinds which the Gallery houses are well worth a visit.  

The exhibition continues until 9 March 2025.

I've uploaded some photographs I took to my Facebook Page where they are proving to be very popular. They show a mix of Islamic art and Morris's designs inspired by Islamic art. I've included narratives for each photo identifying what you are looking at.

You can also find some of the things I saw below.

Granada - designed by William Morris

Silk velvet brocade with silk thread

William Morris Gallery

Granada features pomegranates and almond shaped buds, connected by ogives (pointed arches) and branches, imagery that also appears in Ottoman textiles.

view of the exhibition

PAOTY 2024 - The Commission and the Reveal

This is about Brogan Bertie painting Lorraine Kelly for the National Portrait Gallery of Scotland - his £10K prize for winning Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2024.

It covers:

• preparedness to paint a commission
• painting with Lorraine Kelly
• painting back in the studio
• the big reveal - unveiling of the Commission
• what do people think

Later this week, I'm doing a post which provides a critique of the format of the programme and the way the judging works. I won't be pulling punches....

Preparedness to Paint a Commission

It became very obvious very quickly that the Judges had chosen somebody who 

• had never ever done a commission before and 
• actually wasn't very clued up about how they typically work in practice / real life

That could be because he'd only taken up portrait painting six months previously and to date had only painted his friends who were happy to sit for him as he painted from life. (I shall comment further tomorrow when I get round to tackling how the series was run!)

"I think painting from life gives it an energy that I don't get when painting from photographs"

Brogan Bertie

Personally, I think he's dead set on being "the second Lucian Freud" who insisted on painting from life and never painted from photographs. There is so much of "how he paints" which is influenced by Freud who appears to be one of his heroes. He's a great hero to have, but maybe some more awareness of the stages Freud went through before he arrived at his mature stage might be educational and promote a better sense of the pace of change.

The Transition to Portraiture

There's a section after the chat with his parents - which leads straight into an important backstory.

PAOTY Series 2024: Review of Final

This year the Final of Portrait Artist of the Year and the Winner's Programme have generated much more commentary than in any of the previous series - around 90% of which was adverse.

The finalists with their portraits completed in the Final

This is why I'm splitting my comments into three separate posts.

• Today - a review about the Final / Commision and the paintings produced by the artists plusthe  result
• Tomorrow, the Winner's Programme and the Commission
• Tuesday - a review of the PAOTY series and approach taken, and why it annoys very many viewers and whether it is really fit for purpose in the context of good practice and the current regulation of television. 

(It was going to be two - but midway through writing this my "dock" jumped from my Macbook to my iPad and refused to come back - which left me a bit stuffed in terms of finishing this post - and it took nearly an hour to get back!)

I'm not sure if this is the right way round - since much of what happened in the Final is essentially down to how the series works. However I'm trying to keep it simple - but that mean there'll be some repetition across the posts.

To make sense of what happened and why people felt as they did, you need to follow the paintings that were made.

Change of Location and Judges

The Final was full of people who were there to watch the Final - and it was the biggest audience I've seen at a Final and I've been to a few.

The Final moved from Battersea Arts Centre to Riverside Studios - a television studio next to Hammsersmith Bridge.  Apparently the date also changed. Apparently because the date changed Kate Bryan was unable to participate as a Judge as she had another commitment.  Instead Isabel Gibbon, the Deputy Director and Chief Curator, Portraiture - National Galleries of Scotland - who commissioned the £10k prize portrait of Lorraine Kelly substituted for her.

There was no announcement about Kate's absence which was very weird.

I'm at a loss as to how on earth this happened if the bookings people at both BAC and within Sky Arts are both competent and do their job properly. The date of the Final (Tuesday 23rd April) was in the original instructions for people wanting to enter the competition.

The Sitters and Set-up

The Terms and Conditions for this competition stated

The Producer may ask all of the Finalists to depict the same Portrait of a Sitter at the Final Location, or each Finalist may be required to depict different Sitters at the Final Location.

The set-up and sitters for the Final Portrait

It said nothing about what actually happened i.e. this year the Final had TWO actors as the sitters - Andy Serkis (age 60 from Lord of the Rings) and Lorraine Ashbourne (age 63 - of Margaret Thatcher in the Crown and Bridgerton fame), although only Lorraine got to sit down! They love climbing mountains and had a story about how women climbed mountains in the past - in long skirts. Hence they were dressed in 19th century dress accompanied by ropes and "stuff" for climbing. They looked incredibly drab! 

(Whoever thought this set-up was a great idea needs to be taken aside for a very detailed talking to to as to all the reasons it wasn't. Yet again ).

They were told they had an extra hour - for painting an extra person! (more comments later!)

It was evident from what the artists said on entering the studio and their faces when two sitters walked in that they had NOT been told in advance about the change of arrangement. 

In practical terms, the artists had turned up with supports for doing a portrait of one person and were now being asked to do two. That's just plain unfair in my book. I could use more explicit terms.

Put simply, this is not acceptable in relation to good practice for people participating in a television competition. Which I shall comment further on tomorrow.

Was it likely to promote a good outcome? Good question - which again I'll address in the post about the series - and what needs addressing.

The Artists

In order of their heat, they are

• Paul Lee (Instagram) - review of Episode 1 - a visual effects animator working for the feature film industry who lives in Tunbridge Wells. He has a fine art degree specialising in painting. He returned to oil painting in 2022 and has exhibited with national art societies.
• Brogan Bertie (Instagram) - review of Episode 3 - age 29, he lives in Margate. He has a BA (Hons) in Illustration and Visual Media from London College of Communication and worked in freelance illustration and animation until moving to Margate and training in leatherwork with Cope Studio and beginning to paint. He started painting in oils for the first time in the last year.
• Jennifer Anderson (Instagram) - review of Episode 4 - age 49, a professional portrait painter who lives in Glasgow and paints on metal. She has a 1st class honors degree in Fine Art (painting) from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, Dundee and has exhibited widely throughout the UK and internationally in New York, Singapore, Florida, Zurich, and Toronto and received a number of awards. She's very experienced at working on commission and has produced a number of portraits for Oxford Colleges and other universities and was selected for the BP Portrait Prize back in 2009 (and 2001/04/05/19)

So basically a couple of middle aged artists with degrees in painting and a much younger artist with a background in illustration who has only recently taken up painting - and painting in oil.

(I listed longer profiles of all the artists in The Semi Finalists - Artist of the Year 2024. )

The Portrait Paintings

There are two sets of paintings in the final 

• the painting produced during the filming on Final Day and
• another painting which they had been asked to produce  after the semi-finals.

Call for Entries: Herbert Smith Freehills Portrait Award 2025

You have one month left to get a portrait painted and enter the most prestigious portrait competition in the UK - the Portrait Award at the National Portrait Gallery

• now sponsored by Herbert Smith Freehills (and formerly known as the BP Portrait Award). 
• I now call it THE Portrait Award! 

The highly successful competition aims to encourage artists over the age of eighteen to focus upon, and develop, the theme of portraiture in their work.

First of all, I have to apologise to regular followers for not highlighting this competition earlier. The announcement of the call for entries arrived at a different time of year to when it was normall published - and I unfortunately missed it.

By way of recompense, this post is all about the call for entries and is interspersed with my photos of past winners on the night they won their award!

However that said, let's get on with what you need to know.

Ben Sullivan -Winner in 2017 
and the most successful ever artist in this competition

Summary of Key Information about the Call for Entries 

Why enter The Portrait Award at the National Portrait Gallery?

I wrote two posts last year which 

• provides you with the incentives to enter - see WHY enter The Portrait Award at the National Portrait Gallery (London)
• shows you who got selected in 2023 Selected Artists - HSF Portrait Award 2024 at the National Portrait Gallery

Since its inception, the competition has attracted over 40,000 entries from more than 100 countries and the exhibition has been seen by over 6 million people. It has a first prize of £35,000, making it one of the largest for any global arts competition.

DOWNLOAD the full competition rules (PDF).

• if you get selected - which is itself a very valuable addition to any portrait painter's CV:
• your portrait painting will hang in an exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London from 10 July until 12 October 2025
• AND you could also win a valuable prize
• first prize is £35,000
• second prize is £12,000
• third prize is £10,000
• the Young Artist's Prize (for artists aged between 18 and 30) £9,000
• anybody over the age of 18 (as of 1 January 2024) living anywhere in the world can enter this competition - except for previous first prize winners and those employed by the NPG or the prize's sponsors!

Call for Entries: Series 12 of Portrait Artist of the Year (2025)

The competition to enter Series 12 of Portrait Artist of the Year in 2025 is now open. 

This is my guidance for you on what to expect

• This is a prestigious art competition - televised by Sky Arts
• It has a £10,000 commission as first prize (no such thing as inflation in this competition! Strictly speaking, if they were keeping up with inflation, the prize should now be worth £15,000)  
• the careers of some of the winners have been very productive and fruitful as a result of winning - but it's entirely up to you what you make of it and how you benefit as a result, even if you just participate in a heat
• The deadline for entries is NOON on Friday 7th February 2025 (the deadline has been extended in the past - but best not to assume this will happen)

This is A VERY LONG POST about:

• The nature of this art competition
• WHO can enter
• HOW to enter
• What the day of filming is like - and how long it lasts!
• Plus TIPS about this art competition
• AND TIPS about juried art exhibitions and art competitions generally (at the end).

About the competition

Quotations below are from the Terms and Conditions of the competition or as indicated.

This is an art competition as a television show.

The winner is awarded a commission - worth a TAXABLE fee of £10,000 - to create a portrait of a notable person for a (usually) prestigious organisation.

If you want to know why the prize money is taxable (which I think is a new word in the T&Cs) see my page on my website Art Business Info for Artists 

• about Tax on art awards and prize money 
• and/or Do artists have to pay tax on art prizes?

How it works - a summary

• Filming of Series 12 of Portrait Artist of the Year is planned to take place at (very probably) the Battersea Arts Centre in April 2025.
• In effect this is a 'reality' (i.e. real people/real artists) knock-out competition for portrait artists over eight heats
• Nine artists compete in each heat
• there are three "celebrity" sitters (some you will know/ some you won't! There's a good mix of age, sex, gender, ethnicity and background)
• each sitter has three artists drawing / painting / printing their portrait - in various 2D media
• you have just four hours to complete a portrait - unless you work through lunch which some do.

The Shortlisted Artists will have a maximum of 4 hours over a 5-6 hour period (or such other period as the Producer at its discretion may determine) to complete their Heat Artwork.

• The Sitter gets to choose a portrait - and if it's your portrait this is gifted to the sitter.
• The Heat Winner - from a shortlist of three - goes through to the semi-finals
• Eight heat winners get to compete at the Semi-Final
• Three people from the semi-finals are selected for the Final which involves:
• a commission completed between semi final and final
• four hours to complete the portrait of the celebrity sitter in the final

The dates and times that the Finalists shall be given to complete the first of the Final Artworks shall be determined by the Producer, and may be within a set time period on a single day or over a number of days, and the Producer may film any or all of this process. A space of the contributor’s choice must be provided free of charge by the contributor to film any or all of this process.

Sadly, the days of the Final being at the National Portrait Gallery seem to be over!

TIP You need to know about the conditions you work under on location!

Artist of the Year Masterclass: Week 2

Below you can find the details of all this week's classes in the brand new series of Artist of the year: Masterclass. It's the same tutors as last week - but different topics this week.

Week 2 of Artist of the Year: Masterclass

As before the the programmes are

• on Sky Arts every evening this week
• the first programme starts at 6pm and lasts 30 minutes
• the second programme starts at 6.30pm
• so basically an hour of tuition covering two topics every evening.

So far as I am aware, these classes are only currently accessible to those living in the UK via Sky Arts (on Freeview). You can also watch on catchup if you subscribe to either Sky or Now TV.

If you follow the Artist of the Year Facebook page or Instagram account you'll get a reminder about each programme - which will include a list of the materials being used.

Here's the Facebook post for the two programmes this evening. (Sorry I've had to replace the Instagram video one - as the video just appeared as a great big blank space on my blog!!)

How did you find the new series of Artist of the Year: Masterclass last week?

It's certainly not a definition of masterclass that I'm familiar with. The artists are dealing with basics of the sort usually taught to beginners or improvers.

Speaking personally, I also found it difficult to set aside the hour each evening to watch "live". However, since I subscribe to NOW TV I was able to access the programmes already broadcast on catch-up. My preference would be to see two back to back programmes each week on one set day - over a period of weeks.

I also found that it was very easy to tell which are artists are experienced at teaching at this level - because it was very clear that they

• prepared their lesson well in advance 
• delivered the instruction in a very structured way
• didn't drop art terms into what they said without explaining what the term means
• had very clear instructions as to what materials are required
• knew how best to teach online
• did a good demonstration

Not all tutors were experienced and competent at teaching at this level.

Postscript: 

It did occur to me that maybe this skills development series is being done with the aim of improving the skills levels of painters applying for and getting selected for the two series of Portrait Artist of the Year and Landscape Artist of the Year.

What do you think?

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Review: Semi Finals of Portrait Artist of the Year 2024

This is all about the semi-finals of Portrait Artist of the Year 2024 (Series 11) which was broadcast on Wednesday night. 

It covers various observations about the Semi-Final (the reality and the programme) including:

• The Semi Finalists (Heat winners)
• The Heat Portraits
• The Sitter setup and setting
• Themes of the semi-final
• Judging and Finalists
• Sitters for the Final
  

(PS Did anybody notice the "not deliberate" mistake?)

I've been to semi-finals at the Battersea Arts Centre twice and the way they change it for the semi-finals makes you wonder how on earth the artists will be able to cope. The segment structure is gone and there is a very imposing set surrounded by eight easels!

The Semi Finalists (Heat Winners)

The Semi Finals of Portrait Artist of the Year 2024 is about to start....

"A lot of very ambitious painters" 

The semi finals include 8 heat winners - who are six women and 2 men! 

 The Heat Portraits

Just think about it from the semi finalists perspective. They've met the other semi-finalists but have absolutely no idea about the competition and how competent they are until they enter that big hall at Battersea Arts Centre and see the other Heat Portraits hanging next to their heat portrait. I'm guessing that might generate a few butterflies in the tummy

 

The wall of Heat Portraits

I highlighted the semi-finalists in my post on Wednesday The Semi Finalists - Portrait Artist of the Year 2024 and - as there is no wildcard additional artist this year (which has happened in the past), I'm going to leave it at that.

The Artists in the PAOTY Semi Final 2024
Note the different size of the supports they are working on.
Moving up to the semi-finals means moving up in size for most.

They are - in Episode order:

• Episode 1 - Paul Lee (Instagram) - review of Episode 1
• Episode 2 - Polly Pincott (Instagram) - review of Episode 2
• Episode 3 - Brogan Bertie (Instagram) - review of Episode 3
• Episode 4 - Jennifer Anderson (Instagram) - review of Episode 4
• Episode 5 - Jenna Waldren (Instagram) - review of Episode 5
• Episode 6 - August Lamm (Instagram) - Review of Episode 6
• Episode 7 - Rosie Phillips (Instagram) - Review of Episode 7
• Episode 8 - Kirstin Mackinnon - Review of episode 8 

To be frank, for me there were only four serious contenders and a maybe.

Before it started - and while writing my previous post I decided that the two I was absolutely certain would get to the Final were Jennifer and Paul (i.e. VERY experienced, fabulous eye for a person/painting, get on and paint people) - and after that there were two or three who could produce a good portrait on the day.

Plus it includes my commentary on what happened in the Semi Final. Just to note that it's my practice to never comment on those who do appalling paintings in the heat - but only reference themes which emerged during the programme.

 
HOWEVER as we get to the final stages of a very public art competition for a big money prize, I tend to become a tad more explicit in my commentary on how artists did - albeit I lean towards describing what happened as opposed to naming the artist. 

Bottom line the feedback / critique becomes more direct the closer you get to the prize. My philosophy is if you don't want people to comment, then you really think need to think very long and hard before entering art competitions with big money prizes.

The Setting and the Sitter

The Semi Finalists - Artist of the Year 2024

Just a quick reminder (I know I need one!) of who got through to the semi finals and what they've painted so far.

YOUR CHALLENGE - should you accept it - is to predict the three chosen to progress to the Final after reviewing their self portrait and heat portrait only.....

The images are of the portrait paintings by the artist to date.

The Semi Finalists

I've just noticed, all the semi-finalists are women but for two! So there's going to be at least one woman in the Final and there's a chance it might be all three!

Paul Lee (Instagram) - review of Episode 1

He is a visual effects animator who lives in Tunbridge Wells. He graduated with honours from Birmingham where he studied fine art (1989-91), specialising in painting, at between the years 1989-1991. Since 1994, he has worked as a character and VFX animator in the feature film industry. He returned to oil painting in 2022 and his instagram account clearly demonstrates that he is very capable of capturing both a likeness and expressions and loves to use colour - which he does very well. He has also exhibited at the annual exhibitions at the Mall Galleries (NEAC 2023, Royal Society of Portrait Painters 2024)

self portrait and heat portrait by Paul Lee

Polly Pincott (Instagram) - review of Episode 2

A full time professional artist based in Oxfordshire. She is a member of the Oxford Art Society and was a shortlisted artist selected to exhibit at the British Art Prize 2023. She made a point of practising in advance.  She was very surprised when she won - but shouldn't have been.

Self Portrait and Heat Portrait by Polly Pincott

Brogan Bertie (Instagram) - review of Episode 3

He was born in 1995 in South London and is now a painter and leatherworker based in Margate. In 2019, he graduated with a BA (Hons) in Illustration and Visual Media from London College of Communication. He worked in freelance illustration and animation until moving to Margate and training in leatherwork with Cope Studio.His self portrait took him 5 hours - but he's practiced painting a portrait within 4 hours before the heat

NEW: Artist of the Year Masterclass

 In a few minutes, at 6pm, a new art series on Sky Arts (Channel 36 on Freeview).

Further to my previous post Artist of the Year: Masterclass launches 2nd December. I now have more details as to how this is working.

It starts at 6pm and each programme lasts half an hour - however a second programme starts at 6.30pm EVERY evening.

The artists and topics are as follows - up until 9th December which is as far as my guide goes...

Review: Episode 8 of Portrait Artist of the Year 2024

This is my review of the final heat of Portrait Artist of the Year 2024 - or as Neil Watson (see end) calls it my forensic review of the show".

The artists in Episode 8 with Stephen Mangan

Next week is the semi-final and on Wednesday I'll be posting a review of all the semi-finalists as a memory jogger because I'm struggling right now to remember who got in....

Episode 8: The Sitters

As usual we have a mix of backgrounds when it comes to sitters.

• Rebecca Taylor/Self-Esteem (Musician) - Rebecca Lucy Taylor is also known by her stage name Self Esteem. She is a British musician, songwriter and actress.
• Dr Karan Rajan (Public Health Advocate) - an NHS surgeon and one of the biggest health and science creators on social media
• Emma Thynn (Marchioness of Bath) - her claim to fame is she is the first black Marchioness in British History. Regularly seen on various reality shows.

I rather liked Rebecca's special object - which was the charatcer she came dressed as - with a sideswipe on her lipsticked mouth.

Episode 8: The Artists

Episode 8 artists sat on the steps at Battersea Arts Centre

All the artists are listed below alphabetically by surname - but are not differentiated between professional and amateur.

Given Sky Arts has given up on providing links to their website and social media sites, this blog is now the ONLY site where you can find them! The link to their main 'contact' site is embedded in their name and social media sites follow - if available.

• Katie Gall (Instagram) - an IT specialist from Berkshire. This is her self portrait
• Neil Hamilton - Neil-Jack Alphonsus Hamilton is an Irish artist based in Donegal. He was born in County Down and comes from a family of artists. He graduated in Fine Art from the University of Ulster, Belfast in 2014 and has exhibited his work in numerous local and international shows. He previously competed in Portrait Artist of the Year in 2022. He works on commissions and as a life drawing tutor.
• Kirstin Mackinnon - an optometrist from Glasgow. She's previously been longlisted for portrait awards.
• Asa Medhurst (Instagram)- a creative agency owner and a contemporary figurative artist from South London working in oils and charcoal. He likes to blur the boundary between the real and the imaginary. He graduated from the Kent Institute of Art & Design in 1995 and has since gone on to study at The Royal Drawing School, Art academy and London Fine Arts. He's previously exhibited in the annual exhibition of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters. His portrait below is based on the photo he took in the heat and is rather better than the one he produced at the time - see explanation in text.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Asa Medhurst (@asa.medhurst)

• Gaby Moxy (Instagram) - a professional artist from East Chinnock in Somerset who paints portraits and also has a decorative arts business.
• Brianna Lois Parker (Instagram) - a Caribbean-British professional oil painter  from South East London who graduated with a first class degree in Fine Art in 2021. Her work encapsulates everyday experiences and is strongly Black and British and she has a personal relationship with the subjects of her artwork. I liked her portraits on Instagram. I'm somewhat surprised not to hear that she was the first winner of the Margate Art Prize, selected by Tracy Emin
• Ed Simkins - a graphic designer This is his selfportrait. He studied at Chelsea School of Art at Foundation level but the need for a career took him into Graphic Design and Publishing. 30 years later he now makes art his priority and works across various media.
• Bran Sivakumar (Instagram) - He has two careers. He's a Children's Hand, Plastic & Reconstructive Surgeon at Great Ormond Street Hospital and is also a contemporary British artist who works mostly in oils focusing on studies of still life, portraiture and the human figure. He has a painting in the current annual exhibition by the ROI at the Mall Galleries so I may well have seen him at the Private View yesterday without realising it!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Bran (@bransivas)

• Cristina Vercesi (Instagram) - Originally from Pavia in Italy and now based in London. In her late 30s, in 2017,  she enroled to study at the London Fine Art Studios.where she is now a tutor

The Self Portraits

Judges reviewing the self portraits by artists participating in Episode 8

As you can see this is how the analysis of self portraits worked. Rather fewer smaller self portraits than in some heats and rather more medium/large submissions. Many fewer "just a head".

FORMAT -  two thirds plumped for the portrait format and three went with another way of looking at portraits

• Portrait format x 6
• Landscape x 2
• Square x 0
• Tondo x 1

SIZE - no extremes of size and most avoided smaller sizes 

• Very Large x 0
• Large x 0
• Large/Medium x 4
• Medium x 3
• Small x 2
• Tiny x 0

SCOPE 

• full size or most of body (including hand) x 0
• head, shoulder and hand(s) x 4
• head and upper torso (no hands) x 2
• head and shoulders x 2
• head x 1

Note my comments about content of self portraits below.

Themes

Do you now NEED to demonstrate you can do a full length portrait?