Winners of the National Portrait Gallery's Portrait Award + Commissions

This is a list of 

• ALL the artists who have ever won the Portrait Award organised by the National Portrait Gallery in London 
• PLUS a link to ALL the commissions offered as part of their First Prize.

The list of past winners has been removed from the BP Portrait Award website. It's to be hoped that the National Portrait Gallery will provide evidence of who won what and when on a new page on its website at some future date. 

The most successful Portrait Award Artist ever! (see below for why)

Ben Sullivan with Ginnie and 15 month old Edie (at her second BP Awards ceremony!)

Breech! - Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2017

Oil on canvas, 820 x 400mm

Portrait Commissions

The NPG website records one of the original objectives of the Portrait Award - that of developing a programme of commissions of notable people in the UK.

Bryan Organ's portrait of 'Prince Charles', inaugurates an active programme of commissions. Annual Portrait Award for painters under 40 introduced and twelve portraits commissioned from Portrait Award winner s 1980-9 with support from Imperial Tobacco NPG Commissioning Portraits: Chronology 

However, National Portrait Gallery ONLY records 24 artists as Portrait Award Winners - of the 40 artists who have won the Award(!) - who have their commissioned portraits (part of the prize) listed in the records of the NPG's commissions and the permanent collection.

The other artists who won the award are no longer listed. 

Interestingly NOT all winners are invited to produce a commission!  ONLY 60% of artists have been awarded a commission in addition to the cash prize.

• There has also not been a commission awarded - which has resulted in a completed painting - between 2014-2020 - which seems like a very long time to keep advertising a commission from the NPG as part of the first prize!
• Typically international artists have not painted a portrait of a 'significant Briton' commissioned by the NPG. This is perhaps more understandable - but it's a penalty of making the competition international 

over time, the number of UK artists being selected for this competition has halved. 40th BP Portrait Award (2019) Shortlist

• Bottom line - the Award latterly did NOT fulfil one of the objectives of the original award - see Sponsorship of the "BP Portrait Award" competition has ended.

Portrait Award Winners

'Making A Mark' provides comprehensive records (see BP Portrait Award category) of who won what and when going back to 2008.  

BELOW is a list 

• The name of the award winner - by Sponsor, Title of the Award and Year
• The names of artists in bold included embedded links to my reviews of the announcement of the prizewinner
• identifies the commissioned portrait and links to its page on the NPG website
• Plus includes videos I made of interviews with award winners in recent years.

Sponsors

The award has had three sponsors to date:

• Imperial Tobacco
• John Player & Sons
• BP

Each of these might be regarded as seeking to improve both brand recognition and reputation by sponsoring prestigious art institutions and awards. It's a fact of life everywhere you go. 

However, the nature of the sponsorship triggered lots of protests in latter years - including the refusal of prizes. It's to be hoped that future sponsors won't generate similar issues.

Imperial Tobacco Portrait Award (1980-1982)

The Portrait Award was inaugurated in Feb 1980, when it was sponsored by Imperial Tobacco. It was a competition for young painters, with a prize of £7000. It was conceived as a way of supporting young artists and encouraging them to take up portraiture. 

NPG - Portrait Award Exhibition records | JISC Archives Hub

1980 - ?

1981 - ?
1982 – Humphrey Ocean (website) b. 1951 - his real name is Humphrey Anthony Erdeswick Butler-Bowdon! Winner of the Imperial Tobacco Portrait Award. He had his first major solo exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, London in 1984. He was appointed Professor of Perspective at the Royal Academy of Arts in 2012. Work in numerous public collections.

• He has created or painted 12 portraits for the NPG Collection - including Paul McCartney, Philip Larkin, Willie Whitelaw, Tony Benn, Nick Hornby, Sir Tom Courtenay

John Player Portrait Award (1983-89)

It was required that entrants must be under the age of 40, and their entries must be paintings in oil, tempura or acrylic and be painted from life with the human figure predominant. The competition is judged from original paintings and is followed by an exhibition of works selected from the entries. Usually about 60 works are chosen to be exhibited from over 600 annual entrants. Each year there are eight prize winners. The first prize also includes the opportunity to undertake a commission for the National Portrait Gallery. The judges for the Award always include the Director of the National Portrait Gallery, the winner of the previous year's Award, a senior executive from the sponsoring company, and at least one figurative artist.  

The sponsorship of the competition was taken over by John Player & Sons in 1984 NPG - Portrait Award Exhibition records | JISC Archives Hub

1983 – Michael R. Taylor - (website) Now a member of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters.

• The NPG owns his portraits of the classical guitarist Julian Bream, the crime novelist P.D. James and the composer Sir John Tavener. He is a member of Royal Society of Portrait Painters. 

1984 – Rosemary Beaton (website) - Studied at the Glasgow School of Art. Whilst still a student in third year she was the first Scot and youngest person to win the prestigious John Player National Portrait Award (now BP) in 1984. 

• Painted Sir Robin Day 

1985 – Jeff Stultiens - Now a member of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters.

• Commissioned in 1987 to paint Cardinal Basil Hume for the NPG. 

1986 – Ivy Smith (website) - Show paints portraits of large groups of people and has won a number of public art commissions (eg from hospitals)

• Her commission as part of the First Prize was to paint Sir David Attenborough and Sir Richard Attenborough for the NPG. 

1987 – Alison Watt OBE FRSE RSA b. 1965 (RSA website) - Studied at Glasgow School of Art. In 1987, while still a student, she won the National Portrait Gallery's prestigious annual award. Now known as a contemporary Scottish painter known for her realistic depictions of drapery and figures and has been an Associate Artist at the National Gallery. Her self portrait (1987) is in the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

• Commissioned by the NPG to paint The Queen Mother (1989). 

1988 – Allan Ramsay b.1959 (website) - Has exhibited regularly at the RP Annual Exhibition - but is not a member.

• painted Sir Alan Ayckbourn for the NPG

1989 - JOINT first prize winners

• Paula MacArthur b.1967 (website) - was a prizewinner at John Moore’s Painting Prize in 1993. 
• Commissioned to paint the biochemist Frederick Sanger
• Tai-Shan Schierenberg b.1962 (website - portraits) - Now judges Sky Arts Artist of the Year (portrait and landscape)
• Commissioned to paint John Mortimer; Lord Carrington; Lord Sainsbury.
  Seamus Heaney 

BP Portrait Award (1990-2020)

(In) 1990....the sponsorship was taken over by BP (British Petroleum). For the first time, the preliminary sift of portraits submitted for entry were judged from actual paintings instead of slides. Also that year, began the BP Travel Awards and the first Travel Award was displayed in 1991.

Since 1996 all the artists selected for the exhibition are invited to submit a proposal for the BP Travel Award, an additional Award which funds artists to work on a project related to portraiture. The results of the project are exhibited as part of the next year's Portrait Award.

In 2007, for the first time, the BP competition was opened to everyone aged 18 and over. The prize money for the Portrait Awards has now increased to £25,000, and there are additional prizes for runners up and the sponsorship makes it possible for the exhibition to be free to the public.

NPG - Portrait Award Exhibition records | JISC Archives Hub

1990 – Annabel Cullen (website)

• Commission(1991): Tessa Ann Vosper Blackstone, Baroness Blackstone (1942-), Educationalist

1991 – Justin Mortimer (website)

• Commission: Harold Pinter (1930-2008), Playwright, actor and director

1992 – Lucy Willis b. 1954 (website) - elected as an Academicians of  the Royal West of England Academy in 1993. She has tutored regular painting trips abroad for The Artist magazine since 1990. She's particularly well known for her watercolour paintings and has written four books and many articles on painting techniques.

• Commission: Elizabeth (née Harman), Countess of Longford; Francis Aungier Pakenham, 7th Earl of Longford

1993 – Philip Harris b. 1965 (website) - Previously won 3rd prize in . Currently lives and works in the New Forest. Had his portrait painting in  'Painting the Century, 100 portrait masterpieces' at the NPG

• commissioned to paint Sir Anthony Dowell (completed 1995)

Winner of the BP Portrait Award 1993
(crop of) Two Figures Lying in a Shallow Stream (1992) by Philip Harris
oil on canvas 72" x 48"
- the portrait I voted for in the competition to find the most popular portrait in 30 years. It made my jaw drop when I first saw it and I've never ever forgotten it

1994 – Peter Edwards b. 1955 (website) - in 2021 he received an honorary doctorate of arts from Gloucestershire University

• Commission: Kazuo Ishiguro (1954-), Novelist.
• He has also painted the portrait of Sir Bobby Charlton which has frequently been on display in the 20th century galleries. This is an article about the process - THE SITTER'S TALE: Sir Bobby Charlton

1995 – Ishbel Myerscough  (website)

• Commission (1997): Helen Mirren (b. 1945) - Actress
• Subsequently commissioned to paint Willard White

1996 – James Hague  (website) - He's won numerous other prizes including the Royal Society of Portrait Painters RP Award (2019) and the Ondaatje Prize for Portraiture (2018). James is part of the faculty of The Heatherley School of Fine Art and a member of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters and Contemporary British Portrait Painters.

• Commission (1998): Michael Caine

1997 – James Lloyd  (website) - I first got to know James when I did his Drawing a Head classes at the Royal Drawing School where he still teaches.

• Commission: Paul Smith (now Sir Paul Brierley Smith (1946-), Fashion designer)

1998 – Thomas Watson (website)

• Commission (2001): John Robert Fowles (1926-2005), Writer.

1999 – Clive Smith (website)

• Commission: Ian McKellen (now Sir Ian Murray McKellen (1939-), Actor)

2000 – Victoria Russell (website)

• Commission (2002) : Fiona Mary Shaw (1958-), Actress and writer

2001 – Stuart Pearson Wright (website) He painted The Six Presidents of the British Academy to win the award - the only group painting to ever win this award.

• Commission (2005): Joanne Kathleen ('J.K.') Rowling (1965-) Writer;
• the NPG purchased his portrait of Sir John Hurt plus a number of charcoal drawings have also been added to the collection

2002 – Catherine Goodman  b.1961 (website) won the Royal Academy Gold Medal in 1987.

In 2000 she co-established the Royal Drawing School with HRH The Prince of Wales, to address the increasing absence of observational drawing in art education. Appointed Trustee for The National Gallery, London in 2019

• Commission (2005): Dame Cicely Mary Strode Saunders (1918-2005), Founder of the hospice movement
• the NPG acquired her portrait of Stephen Frears 

2003 – Charlotte Harris (website)

• Commission: Dame Vivien Louise Duffield (1946-), Administrator; Chairman, The Clore Foundation

2004 – Stephen Shankland (website)

• Commission (2008) Sir Peter Mansfield

2005 – Dean Marsh 

• Commission (2008): Camila Batmanghelidjh - Psychotherapist; founder of Kids Company. I loved the commissioned portrait. Sadly it's now been tarnished due to the fall out from the scandal associated with her charity.  See my blog post about the portrait and the scandal - The Camila Batmanghelidjh portrait at the NPG - and what happened next....

2006 – Andrew Tift (website) - Has worked as a figurative realist artist, specialising in portraiture, for nearly 30 years.

• Commission (2014): Ken Livingstone - Politician, ex Mayor of London - this is a drawing he did for the commission 

2007 – Paul Emsley b. 1947 (website) - His portrait drawings are impeccable! I also wrote a blog post about him when he was commissioned to paint a portrait of the Duchess of Cambridge - see Paul Emsley and the Duchess of Cambridge - two videos and a drawing

• Commission: V S Naipaul
• Subsequently painted the first official portrait for the NPG of its current patron: Catherine, Princess of Wales, when Duchess of Cambridge (2012)

2008 – Craig Wylie b. 1973 (website) - Lives and works in Norfolk.

• commissioned to paint Kelly Holmes for the NPG (completed 2012)

BP Portrait Award 2008:

Tony Hayward (Group CEO, BP) and Craig Wylie 

- in front of the winning portrait 'K'

copyright Katherine Tyrrell

2009 – Peter Monkman (website) - a member of member of Contemporary British Portrait Painters (CBPP). He has judged a number of competitions including the BP Portrait Award in 2015.

• Commission (2013): Julia Catherine Donaldson - Writer and playwright; Children's Laureate 2011-2013

Peter Monkman with his daughter and her portrait
Changeling 2
(oil on canvas, 1220 x 900 mm) 

2010 – Daphne Todd OBE PRPP (website) - She also won Second Prize (when it was called the John Player Award) back in 1983. Became the first female President of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters (1994-2000). Awarded OBE for services to the arts in 2022. See also Daphne Todd wins BP Portrait Award 2010. One of a very few portrait painters who was commissioned to paint portraits for the NPG prior to winning the competition! Also became a judge for the BBC's Big Painting Challenge series.

• Portrait Commissions prior to winning the award included: Dame Janet Baker; Sir (Philip) Christopher Ondaatje; Spike Milligan; Lord Sainsbury; 
• BP Portrait Commission: Dame Sally Davies

Daphne Todd with her Last Portrait of Mother

2011 – Wim Heldens b. 1954 in the Netherlands (website) - I was on holiday in France when he won!

• commissioned to paint Harry Djanogly; Carol Ann Djanogly for the NPG

2012 – Aleah Chapin b. 1986 in Seattle, USA (website) - first American winner of the award. My video of my interview with her is on YouTube and it's now received over 144,000 views. See also A Profile of Aleah Chapin. Aleah Chapin continues to paint her aunties, cousins, mother and friends; old and new.

• no portrait commission to date

Aleah Chapin at the BP Portrait Award Ceremony 2012

2013 – Susanne du Toit (website) - I've actually been sketched by Susanne!

• she painted Jeannette Winterson for the NPG

Susanne de Toit - Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2013
(left to right:
Bob Dudley, CEO of BP, Sandy Nairne, Director of the National Portrait Gallery,
Susanne du Toit and guest presenter Joanna Trollope holding her Award)
all photos copyright Katherine Tyrrell

2014 – Thomas Ganter (website) - German artist - who exhibits mainly in Germany. See A video interview with Thomas Ganter, Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2014

• no commission for NPG as yet

Thomas Ganter, winner of the BP Portrait Award 2014
with his winning portrait "Man with a Plaid Blanket"
oil on vanvas 1600mm x 600mm

2015 – Matan Ben-Cnaan b. 1980 (website) - an Israeli painter whose award-winning painting narrated the tragic and harrowing tale of Jephthah and his daughter - within the context of current life. See Video Interview with Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2015

• no commission / no reference to Matan on the NPG website - which is very odd

 

2016 – Clara Drummond b. 1977 (website) - Prior to winning the BP, Clara had been selected for a number of exhibitions associated with open art competitions. In 2018, her first book Drawing and Seeing: Create you Own Sketchbook was published by Kyle Books. see also Interview with Clara Drummond - Winner of BP Portrait Award 2016 Video

• no commission for NPG as yet

Clara Drummond with the portrait which won the First Prize
in the BP Portrait Award 2016
Girl in a Liberty Dress (260 x 370 mm, oil on board)

2017 – Benjamin Sullivan - He was very regularly selected for the BP Portrait exhibition before winning first prize and won 3rd prize in 2016. My video interview is below - see also Interview with Benjamin Sullivan, Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2017 - plus his portraits 2006-2016. Now a member of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters with regular commissions. 

• the NPG  commissioned Ben to paint Martin John Rees, Baron Rees of Ludlow in 2008
• no commission yet - as part of first prize

2018 – Miriam Escofet b.1967 in Barcelona (website) - Moved to UK in 1979.  Elected to membership of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters in 2020. Below is my video of my interview with her after she won the award. See VIDEO Interview with Miriam Escofet, BP Portrait Award Winner 2018

Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2018
Miriam Escofet with her mother and Miriam's portrait "An Angel at my Table"

• No portrait commissioned by the NPG to date.
• in 2019, Miriam was commissioned to paint a portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for The Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office - see Portrait of the Queen by Miriam Escofet which describes her process

2019 – Charlie Schaffer b. 1992 (website) - regularly selected for open art competition exhibitions and won a number of prizes prior to the BP Portrait Award.

• No portrait commissioned to date. 

2020 – Jiab Prachakul b. 1979 (website) born in in 1979 in Nakhon Phanom, a small town on the Mekong River in northeast Thailand. Relocated to London in 2007 and now lives and works in Vannes, France

• No portrait commissioned to date. 

Charlie Shaffer with his portrait and award for first prize in the BP Portrait Award 2019
Imara in her Winter Coat
(1200mm x 900mm, oil on canvas)
The last artist who won to be pictured in the gallery with his portrait

Blogs Posts about BP Portrait Award & Previous BP Portrait Exhibitions

BP Portrait Award - General

• What do paintings by BP Portrait Award winners look like?
• BP Portrait Award - The Thirty Year Vote - which is your favourite?
• No BP Portrait Award in 2021 and 2022
• Sponsorship of the "BP Portrait Award" competition has ended

BP Portrait Award 2020

This was an ONLINE ONLY exhibition

1,981 entries from 69 countries made up of: UK Entries: 917 (46%) and International Entries:1,064 (54%)

• Call for Entries: BP Portrait Award 2020 (Part 1)
• Call for Entries: BP Portrait Award (Part2) - How to Enter
• BP Portrait Award 2020: Shortlist and Exhibition announcements
• Selected Artists for BP Portrait Award 2020 Exhibition
• Jiab Prachakul from Thailand wins BP Portrait Award 2020
• My top 10 portraits from BP Portrait Award 2020
• BP Next Generation 2020 – MAKE ART – goes online with 13 Videos

BP Portrait Award 2019

2,538 artists submitted a portrait as a digital image to the BP Portrait Award 2018. (2,667 artists in 2018) from 84 countries (minus 4 countries compared to 2018). Of these

• 290 (11%) made it through the first stage assessment
• just 44 (1.7%) were selected for this prestigious annual exhibition

• £35,000 BP Portrait Award 2019 - How to enter and how to improve your chances of being selected.
• 40th BP Portrait Award (2019) Shortlist
• Selected Artists and statistics - BP Portrait Award 2019
• Charlie Shaffer wins BP Portrait Award 2019
• BP Portrait Award 2019: Artists with their paintings
• BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2019 (Part 1): Overview critique
• BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2019 (Part 2): Analysis

BP Portrait Award 2018

The BP Portrait Award 2018 received 2,667 entries from 88 countries. Judged anonymously, 48 portraits were selected for the exhibition.

• What do paintings by BP Portrait Award winners look like?
• £35,000 BP Portrait Award 2018 - How to enter and how to get selected
• BP Portrait Award 2018 - The Shortlist
• Selected Artists and statistics - BP Portrait Award 2018
• Miriam Escofet wins BP Portrait Award 2018
• BP Portrait Award 2018 - Artists with their paintings
• VIDEO Interview with Miriam Escofet, BP Portrait Award Winner 2018
• Review: BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2018

BP Portrait Award 2017

• £30,000 BP Portrait Award 2017 - How to enter and how to get selected
• BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2017 - Selected Artists
• BP Portrait Award 2017 - The Shortlist
• Ben Sullivan wins BP Portrait Award 2017
• Interview with Antony Williams (BP Portrait Award 2017 3rd Prize) VIDEO 
• Interview with Thomas Ehretsmann (BP Portrait Award 2017 2rd Prize)
• Interview with Benjamin Sullivan, Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2017 - plus his portraits 2006-2016 VIDEO 
• Should artists use prize money to protest against the sponsor of an art competition?

Exhibition:

• BP Portrait Award 2017: Artists with their paintings
• BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2017 - Video and Review VIDEO 

BP Portrait Award 2016

• £30,000 BP Portrait Award 2016 - How to enter and how to get selected
• Comparison of the RSPP Open and BP Portrait Award Competition
• BP Portrait Award 2016 - Artists with their paintings
• My "Best of the Rest" from BP Portrait Award Entries - the ones that didn't make it through to the final 53 
• BP Portrait Award 2016: Selected Artists
• £30,000 BP Portrait Award 2016 - The Shortlist
• Clara Drummond wins £30,000 BP Portrait Award 2016
• Interview with Clara Drummond - Winner of BP Portrait Award 2016
• Interview with Benjamin Sullivan (BP Portrait Award 2016 3rd Prize)
• Video and review of BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2016

BP Portrait Award 2015

• BP Portrait Award 2015 entry goes digital
• How to enter the £30,000 BP Portrait Award 2015 - and improve your chances of being selected
• Selected Artists - BP Portrait Award 2015
• Brits lose out in BP Portrait Award 2015
• Shortlist for £30,000 BP Portrait Award 2015 announced
• Israeli artist Matan Ben Cnaan wins BP Portrait 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! 
• José Luis Corella wins BP Portrait Award 2015 Visitors' Choice Award
• BP Portrait 2015 - Artists with their paintings
• Video of Exhibition: BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2015 - video and analysis

BP Portrait Award 2014

• BP Portrait Award 2014 - Call for Entries A review of why and how to enter the BP Portrait Award 2014 - plus how it can benefit a portrait artist's career. 
• Shortlist announced for BP Portrait Award 2014
• BP Portrait Award: From 2,500+ entries to just three artists
• BP Portrait Award 2014 - Video of presentation to prizewinners
• BP Portrait Award 2014 Exhibition - review and video
• A video interview with Thomas Ganter, Winner of the BP Portrait Award 2014
• Richard Twose and David Jon Kassan ...
• Video - what the artist saw

BP Portrait Award 2013

• BP Portrait Award 2013: Call for Entries
• BP Portrait Award 2013 - The Shortlist
• Susanne du Toit wins £30,000 BP Portrait Award 2013
• BP Portrait Award 2013 - Selected Artists and Statistics
• BP Portrait Exhibition 2013 - Video & Review
• Sophie Ploeg wins BP Travel Award 2013
• Carl Randall's Japan - the best BP Travel Award Exhibition ever!

BP Portrait Award 2012

• Call for Entries: BP Portrait Award 2012
• BP Portrait Award 2012 - 55 Selected Artists
• BP Portrait Award 2012 - The Shortlist
• Aleah Chapin wins £25,000 BP Portrait Award 2012
• A Profile of Aleah Chapin
• Carl Randall wins BP Travel Award 2012
• Review: BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2012 (Part 1) Focuses on a theory about what's important to get selected. 
• BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2012 (Part 2) Part 2 of a review of the BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2012. Focuses on portrait paintings I like. 
• Video of BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2012

BP Portrait Award 2011

• CALL FOR ENTRIES: BP Portrait Award 2011
• BP Portrait Award 2011 Shortlist
• BP Portrait Award 2011: links to Selected Artists
• Review: BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2011
• BP Travel Awards: 2010 (Paul Beel) and 2011 (Jo Fraser)
• BP Portrait Award 2011: People's Favourite & Statistics 

BP Portrait Award 2010

• Daphne Todd wins BP Portrait Award 2010
• Two American Artists win BP Portrait Prizes
• BP Portrait Award: Michael Gaskell's unparalled record
• BP Portrait Exhibition 2010 opens today (VIDEO) 
• BP Portrait Award 2010 - Shortlist announced
• BP Portrait Award 2010: List of Exhibitors and Brian Sewell

BP Portrait Award 2009

• BP Portrait Tour & Portrait of the Nation
• Sue Rubira makes her mark on bp portrait
• Exhibition review: BP Portrait Award
• Peter Monkman wins first prize in BP Portrait Award 2009
• BP Portrait Award 2009 - the shortlist
• BP Portrait Award - who enters and who gets selected
• BP Portrait Award 2009 - Call for Entries

BP Portrait Award 2008

• Making a Mark: Craig Wylie wins BP Portrait Award 2008
• Making a Mark: BP Portrait Prize 2008 - exhibition opens

BP Portrait Award 2007

• Making a Mark: Paul Emsley wins BP Portrait Award
• View the BP Portrait Award 2007 and BP Travel Award 2006 exhibitions