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.
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| 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.
