Derwent Art Prize 2018 - Selected Artists

The artists selected for the Derwent Art Prize Exhibition at the Mall Galleries are listed below. This year's competition has had the highest ever number of entries following an international open call. This resulted in:

• 1278 artists 
• from 64 different countries 
• submitted a total of 3,299 artworks 
• and 57 selected for the exhibition.

The submissions were judged by an expert panel comprising

• Gill Saunders, Senior Curator at the V&A; 
• Chris Sharratt, Art Critic; and 
• Clare Woods, Artist.

“being a selector for this year’s Derwent Art Prize was the kind of challenge that you can’t help but enjoy. The diversity of drawing practice and the energy, thought and skill displayed by so many of the artists was exciting to see and meant that some very good work didn’t make the final selection. However, in the end I think that, after an intense process of discussion and careful consideration, this year’s exhibition provides a fitting overview of contemporary drawing practice.”  Chris Sharratt

Looks like Derwent fed the Judges while they deliberated at the V&A!

Selected Artists

Overall, the judges selected 67 artworks which celebrate drawing in all its diversity.

This is the list of the 57 selected artists for the Derwent Art Prize Exhibition 2018.

Links in their names are to their websites (if these can be found).  Note this has still to be completed - but takes time! If you want the website to your name inserted please leave a comment with the correct url.

• Jonathan Alibone (UK) - based in Northampton; Currently a resident at The Sanctuary studios. He has exhibited widely, including at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. His work features in collections throughout Europe, Russia and USA.
• Margie Andrew-Reichelt (UK) - BA (Hons) Fine Art, Nottingham University (2013). Also selected for the Threadneedle Prize 2013, the Derwent Art Prize 2014 and the Sunday Times Watercolour Competition (2015). This is a link to an interview with her
• Jemma Appleby (UK) -  Lives and works in London and Hampshire. 2006 - 2009 1st Class BA Hons Fine Art Painting, City and Guilds of London Art School. Selected for the Jerwood Drawing Prize 2014, Exhibits widely. Two of her charcoal drawings selected for Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2018.
• Malcolm Ashman (UK) -  an academician at the Royal West of England Academy (RWA). a member of the Royal Society of British Artists (RBA), the Royal Institute of Oil Painters (ROI) and the Bath Society of Artists. Exhibits in London and the south of England, including the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, the Threadneedle Prize and the Royal Watercolour Society, Bankside Gallery, London.
• Maura Barreto - past exhibitor / no details
• Victoria Clare Bernie - Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Victoria Clare Bernie received an MA in Fine Art from Edinburgh University and Edinburgh College of Art, a Postgraduate Diploma in Printmaking from Edinburgh College of Art and a Masters in Architecture History and Theory from McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada. She has been a recipient of a number of grants and awards
• Emma Bertin Sanabria 
• Jean Paul Beumer 
• France Bizot 
• Kate Black - 
• Su Bonfanti (UK) - completed the MA Drawing course at UAL Wimbledon in September 2017; mainly exhibits in and around south Londonand home counties at present

'Tanhurst House/Piazza Epiro' by Su Bonfanti
graphite on photo transfer

• Martyn Burdon (UK) - Graduated from Brunel University in 2004. Lives and works in Buckinghamshire . Also selected for the BP Portrait Prize 2017 and as one of the 'Artist and Illustrator Magazine' 2018 Artists of the Year.
• Adelina Canolli 
• Neide Carreira 
• Sarah Carvell  - 
• Lewis Chamberlain (UK) - past winner of the ING Discerning Eye Prize
• Phil Clark  - 
• June Collier  - 
• Catherine Creaney  - 
• Paul Crook  - 
• Lesley Doyle  - 
• Sarah Duncan  - 
• James Eagle - 
• Edo Fuijkschot 
• Frankie Gao  - 
• Anna Gardiner - 

Chuffed to have this piece accepted at the #Derwent Art Prize which opens in September at @mallgalleries, London then travels around the UK until January 2019. Washday, charcoal on paper, 80 x 64 cm. #charcoal #drawing pic.twitter.com/SqQABxnWl0

— Anna Gardiner (@annagardinerart) May 25, 2018

• Paul Gladstone  
• Duncan Godfrey  
• Laura Guoke - Winner of BP Travel Award 2016
• Barton Hargreaves 
• Martyn Hill 
• Jennifer Ho 
• Philip Hood
• Maree Hughes 
• Sunghun Jung 
• Hooi San Koh 
• Aleksei Kosarev
• Kin Choi Lam
• Andrew Lansley   
• Debbie Lee  
• Ron Logan  
• Alex Maczkowski - based in the West Midlands

Absolutely thrilled to find out my #graphite #drawing 'Untitled (Palindrome)' has been selected for this years #DerwentArtPrize pic.twitter.com/pft3dQmZ9U

— alex maczkowski (@Erm_ok) May 24, 2018

• Lee Madgwick (UK) - b. King’s Lynn, Norfolk, England, 1980. Graduated in Graphic Design from Norwich University College of the Arts, 2003. Tecently elected as a member of the Royal Society of British Artists (RBA The drawing selected is ‘Shroud’ - see below and Twitter would suggest this is a return to drawing after a long break.

Two and a half 2B pencils later, I’ve finally finished. pic.twitter.com/f7WprTjr5c

— Lee Madgwick (@LeeMadgwick) April 12, 2018

In further UK competition news, we're proud to have made the shortlist of the Derwent Art Prize with a slightly larger mini-panorama - 'Entry to an East', 55x148 cms @ParkerHarrisCo @DerwentPencils https://t.co/SLz8OibvPW pic.twitter.com/xGo3EMPDB6

— Hipkiss #FBPE (@HipkissArt) June 18, 2018

• Alpha Mason (UK/France) - Hipkiss is a pseudonym used for a British artist duo - Alpha and Chris Mason - based in Gers, Midi-Pyrénées, France since 2001.  Unclear whether this work is by Alpha alone
• Rachel McDonnell 
• Liana Moran 
• Simon Parish 
• Elizaveta Poluyanskaya
• Julie Rafalski 
• Ian Robinson 
• Iona Rowland 
• Leo Santos-Shaw  
• Casper Scarth  
• Emma Seach 
• Jovanka Stanojevic
• Aishan Yu

Exhibition and Awards

The Derwent Art Prize Exhibition will be held in the Threadneedle Space at the Mall Galleries from 18 – 23 September 2018 from 10am – 5pm daily. Admission is FREE.

The Derwent Art Prize aims to reward excellence by showcasing the very best 2D & 3D artworks created in pencil or coloured pencil as well as water-soluble, pastel, graphite and charcoal by British and International artists.

Prizes prizes totalling £12,500 will be awarded in a private awards ceremony on 20 September 2018. These include 

• First Prize of £6,000, 
• Second Prize of £3,000, 
• Third Prize of £1,500 and 
• the Young Artist Award of £750 for an artist under 25 years of age. 

There is also a People’s Choice Award of £750, which gives the general public an opportunity to vote for their favourite shortlisted work. The poll will launch on the Derwent Art Prize Facebook page on 25 June 2018.  ‘Likes’ of respective shortlisted artworks will be utilised as votes. Thus the poll is not anonymous, so if you place a vote, the poll administrator and other voters will be able to view your selection. (see terms and conditions)

More about the Derwent Art Prize

These are my previous blog posts about this award.

Derwent Art Prize 2018

• The 4th Derwent Art Prize 2018 - Call for Entries - overview of terms and conditions and how to enter this competition

Derwent Art Prize 2016

• Derwent Art Prize 2016 - Prizewinners - details of who won prizes in 2016
• The 3rd Derwent Art Prize - Call for Entries

Derwent Art Prize 2014

• Derwent Art Prize 2014 - Selected Artists - 79 works in pencil by 61 artists were in the exhibition
• Two People's Choice Awards - two opportunities for the public to vote for the People's Choice Award in relation to the artwork selected for exhibition
• Derwent Art Prize 2014 - ineligible drawing wins first prize? - this post reflects my perspective i.e. I have no time for people who copy other people's photographs in submitting work for competitions - plus my correspondence with the organisers
• Derwent Prize Exhibition 2014 - Other prizewinners - are detailed below in this post plus photographs of the winners where I have them and my comments.
• Review: Derwent Art Prize 2014 Exhibition - includes my video of my walk round the Derwent Art Prize 2014 exhibition

Derwent Art Prize 2013

• NEW! The Derwent Art Prize - for pencil art - announcement of the prize
• The Derwent Art Prize - a discussion (20 July 2013) - this first post is particularly relevant to those whose experience of pencil art is limited to realistic and hyper-realistic artwork
• Derwent Art Prize 2013 - Selected Works & Artists (23 July 2013) This post includes a list of the names of the selected artists and links to their websites where these could be identified.
• Chrys Allen wins inaugural Derwent Art Prize for pencil art (19 September 2013) - This post also provides images and more information about the artwork which won prizes last year

Prizewinners: John Moores Painting Prize 2018

This is about the five artists who have all won prizes in The John Moores Painting Prize 2018.  The artist who has won the £25,000 First Prize will be announced on Thursday 12 July at The John Moores Painting Prize 2018 Exhibition at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool. Each of the other artists will win a £2,500 runner-up prize.

The John Moores Painting Prize 2018 - Prizewinners

Prizewinners - John Moores Painting Prize 2018

The artists whose paintings have won a prize - AND been shortlisted for the First Prize in the John Moores Painting Prize 2018 are - in alphabetical order:

• Billy Crosby
• Jacqui Hallum
• Tom Howse
• Joseph O'Rourke
• Shanti Panchal

They come from the:

• 60 artists whose work was selected for exhibition - for the 60th year of this competition - from a total of
• 258 paintings which were anonymously shortlisted for stage 2 judging from the
• 2,700 paintings entered for the John Moore Painting Prize 2018.

The winner of the First Prize will receive £25,000 PLUS an additional award (to mark the 60th year):

• a three month fellowship at Liverpool John Moores University 
• an in-focus solo display at the Walker Art Gallery in 2019.
• In addition, the prize is NOT a purchase prize, but the Walker Art Gallery may also purchase the painting which means another 'win' for the First Prizewinner.

The other shortlisted artists will receive a prize of £2,500.

BELOW are images of the paintings and more information about the artist. Links in their names are to their websites or sites where you can find out more about the artist.

Call for Entries: 2019 Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition

The 2019 Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition has issued a Call for Entries and this post summarises

• the aim and scope of the exhibition
• the scope and eligibility criteria for who can enter what
• how to enter.

The Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition 2019

The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery invites artists to submit one portrait in any media for consideration in the fifth triennial Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition.

Aim and Scope

The aim of the Outwin Boochever Competition is to

showcase excellence and innovation with a strong focus on the variety of portrait media used by artists today.

The Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition is currently held every three years - 2006, 2009, 2013, 2016 to date. The next one is in 2019.

"The Outwin 2019: American Portraiture Today" is a major exhibition of portraits selected as finalists and will be on view at the Portrait Gallery from 2nd November 2019 until 7th September 2020.

There are also plans for a nationwide tour between October 2020 and January 2022

Prizes: what's on offer?

The awards on offer total $42,000 (£31,600) and are as follows:

• First Prize: $25,000 cash prize and a commission to create a portrait of a remarkable living American for the National Portrait Gallery’s permanent collection
• Second Prize: $7,500 cash prize
• Third Prize: $5,000 cash prize
• Commended Artists (up to four individuals): $1,000 cash prize(s)
• People’s Choice Award (announced around May 2020): $500 cash prize

Below are the images of the Prizewinners in 2016

Outwin Boochever Prizewinners in 2016

Jurors: Who are the jurors for the 2019 competition?

...and how does the jury process work?

Review: New English Art Club Annual Exhibition 2018 #1

I'm very late with my review of the Annual Exhibition of the New English Art Club this year due to its juxtaposition with the opening of the RA Summer Exhibition and the BP Portrait Award exhibition plus various other personal matters.

However I visited on Tuesday (and again today) and found a good-looking and more colourful exhibition and lots of red dots.  

I will say however that this remains overwhelmingly an exhibition by members of NEAC.

View of walls in the Main Gallery

View the exhibition online too!

NEAC's Annual Exhibition 2018 continues at the Mall Galleries continues until Saturday 23rd June (10am - 5pm).

You can also view it online, although I'd much prefer a way to navigate via pages tabbed with the start letter of the surname. Having to tab all the way through the entire exhibition to get to a non-member who has a surname starting with a letter towards the end of the alphabet is tedious in the extreme.

At present you cannot buy online via the NEAC website (although I'm guessing you can after the actual exhibition closes) - but you can make enquiries about works you are interested in right now via the Mall Galleries website - where the exhibition is also online.

You can also read the e-catalogue released via Issuu online

The end wall of the Main Gallery

I'm not sure the NEAC Annual Exhibition still has that "thing" that says "This is a NEAC exhibition" when I walk in.  While good looking on first impressions, it didn't make me go WOW!

The New English Art Club is a group of around ninety professional painters whose work is based principally upon direct observation of nature and the human figure
About the New English Art Club

For a long time the NEAC Exhibition had a very distinct identity - as expressed above - and I think maybe it's lost that.

• I'm inclined to think it's maybe because the styles of members seem to have diversified over time. Not all to my taste I must confess!
• There again it could be the hang....

Some of the paintings hanging in the Threadneedle Space

Below you can find images of the exhibition and some observations. I went back to see it again this afternoon as my SD card ran out of space on Tuesday.  I find reviewing the exhibition again when I get home from the photos I take enables me to see things I sometimes miss while in the exhibition - notwithstanding the fact I scribble lots of notes!

Who pays? Liability when exhibited items are damaged

This is about the LEARNING POINTS arising from the £99,000 claim for damages that a couple in Kansas were presented with - after their five year old broke a sculpture.

the aftermath and the start of the inquest
footage from the community centre's surveillance camera

Yesterday, I posed the following question on Facebook

On the one hand, the parents are "outraged" by the prospect of a bill £99,000 ($132,000) for their child pulling at / knocking off and breaking a sculpture.

On the other hand, what about the artist who has just had an unsupervised child deprive them of the prospect of the proceeds from selling the artwork?

So should children be allowed anywhere near artworks which are valuable?
Or should galleries do better at protecting valuable art?
Are bills for damages the solution? Would your insurance cover you?

P.S. Who says the artwork is worth £99,000?

As you might expect lots of people had lots of opinions - and there were lots of useful learning points which I said I'd summarise in a blog post.

However first here's the unexpurgated Surveillance Video of the incident at the Tomahawk Ridge Community Center in Overland Park, Kansas.



My take on this, based on comments made elsewhere by the mother and others is that:

• THIS IS NOT AN ART GALLERY - it's a Community Centre
• the boy who toppled the sculpture is five years old.
• the children were attending a wedding reception at the centre with their parents
• the parents were saying goodbye to the happy couple when their children decided to take a wander
• the children were very clearly not being actively supervised by a parent - and were in effect doing what they fancied
• the adults present were also not supervising their behaviour in the absence of the parents
• the women sitting down are unrelated to the children - as in we don't normally see ladies in shorts at wedding receptions! I think the woman walked over because the child started to cry

The Issues this incident raises

So what are the issues raised by this incident. The ones we identified yesterday include the following. You may have other suggestions and do feel free to comment

1. Value - Who can say what an item is worth for the purposes of reimbursement?
2. Health and Safety - Do all venues owe a vicarious liability for the health and safety of third parties visiting the venue?
3. Parental Responsibility - what is a parent liable for if their children are not properly supervised?  Is it an accident when parents have been negligent in their duties?
4. Insurance - Who is liable? Who pays at the end of the day?
5. Consignment paperwork - What does paperwork need to make clear?

So I'll expand on each of these points below. Please note I'm not a lawyer and this is based on reading around and experience and does not constitute legal advice.

VIDEO Interview with Miriam Escofet, BP Portrait Award Winner 2018

This is about a video interview I did with Miriam Escofet, the winner of the BP Portrait Award 2018 (See Miriam Escofet wins BP Portrait Award 2018)

BP Portrait Award Winner 2018
Miriam Escofet with the portrait of her mother "An Angel at my Table"
photograph: Katherine Tyrrell

It's been my habit for the past few years to interview the winners of the BP Portrait Award on video - in front of their portrait in the National Portrait Gallery.  Background noise in the gallery has always been a bit of a problem, however this year, the exhibition has changed galleries and, as a result, the acoustics meant that the noise levels were too loud for my equipment (my trusty iPhone!) and an interview in the gallery was impossible.

Instead we went up to the Portrait Restaurant at the top of the building (where I was booked in for lunch) and did the interview there. We still had background noise as you will hear - but it's very easy to hear Miriam in the interview.

The video has been uploaded to my Making A Mark Video Channel on YouTube - (where you can also see past videos relating to BP Portrait Award Winners - see also below)

• You can view it full size on YouTube. 
• You were going to get the large HD version - but YouTube decided it couldn't work out the audio file 
• so it's the same size as in previous years - which means it can be viewed on mobile devices (I've tested on my iPhone!)

In this 15 minute interview, Miriam talks about:

• learning about art from her father who was a painter (Jose Escofet)
• the reasons for choosing the art school she attended
• how she moved slowly from still life, via paintings of architecture to portraiture
• her history with the BP Portrait Award
• her process for painting portraits - including pastel studies and maquettes - and commissions
• the portrait itself - and what the levitating angel and the moving dish are all about
• how she plans to spend her prize money
• the best bit of winning this award

This is Miriam's website http://www.miriamescofet.com/

and her Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/MiriamEscofetArtist/

Below you have

• more about how you can see this year's exhibition in London and on tour
• articles about Miriam in the newspapers
• FOR THE SERIOUS FANS: more about BP Portrait Award Winners from previous years

See the BP Portrait Award Exhibition

The BP Portrait Award Exhibition and the prizewinning portraits are on display during 2018/19 at the following venues:

• National Portrait Gallery, London - 14 June to 23 September 2018
• Wolverhampton Art Gallery - 13 October – 2 December 2018 and 
• Scottish National Portrait Gallery, Edinburgh - 15 Dec 2018 - 10 March 2019.

I've also got another video to share with for those of you who can't get to see the exhibition - it includes my quick trot around the exhibition on Awards night. That'll be coming up later this week or next.

Articles about Miriam Escofet winning the BP Portrait Award

• Surreal portrait of artist's mother wins 2018 BP portrait award | The Guardian
• BP Portrait Award: Mum drinking tea picture wins top prize | BBC

Interviews with other BP Portrait Award prizewinners

For those wanting to know more about the artists who win prizes at the BP Portrait Award. 

There are two choices:

• If you just want to watch the videos then go to my Making A Mark Video Channel and review the BP Portrait and Travel Awards Playlist
• Or, if you want to know more about the artist, consult my posts BELOW about the prizewinners which all contain VIDEO INTERVIEWS with other artists who won BP Portrait Award prizes.

2017

• Interview with Benjamin Sullivan, Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2017 - plus his portraits 2006-2016 
• Interview with Antony Williams (BP Portrait Award 2017 3rd Prize) 

2016

• Interview with Clara Drummond - Winner of BP Portrait Award 2016 Video
• Interview with Benjamin Sullivan (BP Portrait Award 2016 3rd Prize)

2015

• Video Interview with Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2015
• Michael Gaskell (2nd Prize BP Portrait 2015) - a video interview - the most consistent second prizewinner never to win! 

2014

• A video interview with Thomas Ganter, Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2014
• Richard Twose and David Jon Kassan - video interviews with BP Portrait Award prizewinners 2014 - including the second most popular interview to date - with David Jon Kassan

2013 

• Sophie Ploeg wins BP Travel Award 2013

2012

• A Profile of Aleah Chapin - includes her video interview which has now received over 142,000 views on YouTube. Aleah Chapin paints her aunties, cousins, mother and friends; old and new.

Prior to this, these were my blog posts about the BP Portrait Award winners (I was on holiday in 2011)

2010

• Daphne Todd wins BP Portrait Award 2010

2009

• Peter Monkman wins first prize in BP Portrait Award 2009

2008 - the first year I attended the awards ceremony

• Craig Wylie wins BP Portrait Award 2008

VIDEO: An Appreciation of Glasgow School of Art

There have been a number of responses on social media to the tragic and devastating fire at the Glasgow School of Art.

I know it’s just a building but it’s history, it’s art, it’s architecture, it’s artists’ work and lives, it’s Glasgow. #glasgowschoolofart #Glasgow https://t.co/ZGhHINkK1J

— Amanda de Lussey (@toonmillie) June 15, 2018

Christopher Pitbladdo has put together a wonderful video of film about the Glasgow School of Art - in the past and during the recent renovation. It's probably the most coherent footage about the design, structure and interior of the GSA that exists - and it needs to be shared

As he says (on Saturday 16th June 2018)

I've been talking today with people who didn't know the #GSA very well, particularly the inside of the library. So I've thrown together a quick sequence of Mackintosh's building at its very best.

and

A short while ago, I was lucky enough to edit a documentary about Charles Rennie Mackintosh. When news filtered through of another fire in his masterpiece - the GSA - I quickly edited this collection of shots together as a memory of the building.

An Appreciation of Glasgow School of Art from Christopher Pitbladdo on Vimeo.

The documentary which he references was highlighted in yesterday's post Lachlan Goudie on Charles Rennie Mackintosh - on iPlayer.

Not sure how to manage my anger at the needless catastrophe of the GSA fire and now, the possible demolition. All I know is that as an artist, Mackintosh was one of the most determined and single minded visionaries the world has ever produced. pic.twitter.com/bU9Zu5cQMB

— Lachlan Goudie (@lachlangoudie) June 17, 2018

2. He would expect us to push our way through this miserable moment using the power of art and creativity. pic.twitter.com/azxGeJcmwI

— Lachlan Goudie (@lachlangoudie) June 17, 2018

These came up on my Fbook today as ‘memories’ of pics i took a few years ago 😢 @GLAMackintosh #Mackintosh150 #MackintoshBuilding @peoplemakeGLA @78Derngate #architecture @GSofA #GSofA #history #art #design #Glasgow #mackintoshfire @Glasgow_Live @GlasgowCC #Glasgowfire #hope pic.twitter.com/sPgv7740On

— john dyer (@wildswimmer67) June 18, 2018

Further comments on the fire

• Glasgow School of Art: sprinklers had not been fitted after first fire | The Guardian - I'm thinking Kier Construction are going to have some difficult questions to answer....

A spokesperson for the British Automatic Fire Sprinkler Association said it was understood that automatic fire sprinklers had not been fully fitted as the building was still undergoing refurbishment from the 2014 fire.“However, it should be realised that sprinklers can be fitted in buildings throughout construction on a temporary basis, as there is a considerable risk from fire during this period,” the association added.

• ‘The building as it was is gone for good’ – remembering the Glasgow School of Art | Apollo Magazine - which includes a great RIBA photo of the wall of the Library block

This all makes it sound like it is a real person who has died, and in a strange way that’s not far off. The sheer idiosyncrasy of the building, Mackintosh’s care and attention to detail, and its rich intellectual subtexts and simple vital presence gave it more personality – its own and its creator’s – than almost any building I’ve ever experienced.

• Glasgow School of Art fire: Mackintosh building future in balance | Times Higher Education
• Glasgow art school blaze: Fire chiefs 'guarantee' to find cause | BBC News - this includes one of those "before and after" photographic devices which shows the extent of the devastation

About the 2014 and 2018 Fires

• Major fire at Rennie Mackintosh's Glasgow School of Art (May 2014)
• The Mac after the Fire - an Archive, an Appeal and guess WHO! (June 2014)
• Ash to Art - over £500k raised for Glasgow School of Art Fire Appeal (March 2017)
• ANOTHER Major Fire at Rennie Mackintosh's Glasgow School of Art (June 2018)