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Friday, November 22, 2024

Review: Episode 7 of Portrait Artist of the Year 2024

PAOTY Episode 7: lined up for shortlisting

This week we reached the penultimate heat, had artists eager to show us all - from boobs to two views of a self portrait. Plus Kate sprained her ankle, missed the filming of the review of the self portraits at the beginning and was on crutches throughout. So there was lots of sitting down.... 

 As usual, this review follows the same format as all the previous ones in Series 11 (listed - with ALL REVIEWS FROM PAST SERIES - at the bottom)

Episode 7: Sitters


The three sitters in this penultimate heat were:
  • Martha Kearney (Presenter) - a well known journalist and radio broadcaster used to the main presenter of BBC4's "The World at One" for 11 years and then the Today Programme. She stood down from broadcasting the news after the last General Election this summer - but continues to do nature programming." She brought an ancient way to keep bees.
  • Kevin McCloud - (Designer / TV Presenter) - the presenter of Channel 4's Grand Designs - since 1999 - much loved by all those aspiring to live in nicer houses but terrified of the building costs! We've all watched his hair disappear - but I want to know how can he be 4+ years younger than me? He brought a much loved axe - which the risk assessment people determined had to be strapped to a board to make it on set!
  • Heather Mills (Activist) - a former model and animal rights activist who is most famous for being the ex-wife of Sir Paul McCartnery and throwing a jug of water over his solicitor in the High Court. It turns out that she has a new occupation - winning medals for winter sports. She brought her prosthetic ski racing leg!


Episode 7: Artists


The artists sat on the steps of Battersea Arts Centre where the heats are filmed
 
All the artists are listed below alphabetically by surname - but are not differentiated between professional an amateur. I do this because the artists get no recognition in the end credits of each programme - despite the fact the programmes would not exist without them!

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. NOTE for Artist of the Year

Given the absence of posts on Instagram for this episode when I started writing yesterday (did somebody get bored/forget?) this is from a comment I made on my Facebook Page
If you're going to do social media marketing for a series you have to:
  1. do it regularly - for every programme
  2. do it consistently
  3. add in extras (we like these) - BUT don't remove essentials (introducing the artists) and improvements!
This list took a lot longer this week as I checked subtitles....
  • Kitty Bellamy (Instagram) - a mother, self-directed artist and part-time French Polisher living in York - who had some good news three weeks ago about where her self portrait will be exhibited next - at the upcoming Annual Exhibition of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters at the Mall Galleries - opening next week. Clearly the selectors for the ROI know quality when they see it!
.
  • Jack Hewitt (Instagram) - a self-taught oil painter based in East London, primarily focused on figurative and portrait painting. He also works as a part-time supervisor at a music venue. He's also exhibited with the Royal Society of Portrait Painters and NEAC.
  • Sophia Kaur Hambleton-Grey (Instagram) She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts, 2019-2022 from the Ruskin School of Art / Magdalen College, University of Oxford (so one of the "lockdown" graduates). Currently studying for a Masters of Fine Arts at Goldsmiths University and volunteering as a WiSER Peer Project Mentor.Kiana Manu (Instagram) is a London-based advertising student (at the time) who graduated with a first class degree this summer.
  • Paul Martin (Instagram) - a retired creative director from Pembrokeshire. Paul graduated from Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts in 1984 with a BA(hons) Degree in Art & Design. He had a 25 year career as a visualiser, storyboard artist and graphic designer, eventually forming his own design agency in London. He retired from design in 2007 and returned to his roots as a painter in Pembrokeshire. He has a studio situated on the foothills of the Preseli hills. This is his self portrait.
  • Donna McGlynn (Instagram) - a painter and printmaker who is based in Dunfermline in Fife, Scotland. She is a Gray's School of Art Aberdeen alumni and taught art and design for a number of years. She won the prestigious £5,000 Sutherland Independent Scottish Portrait Award in Fife Art 2023
I'm on this series. I'll be watching through my fingers as although it seemed like a good idea to apply after a couple of glasses of wine, I was a bit taken aback and regret-y when I got selected. Anyhoo - the folks who make this show are A DELIGHT and I loved them. They made all of us feel very special. I understand why participants return - we're treated so well. Donna McGlynn
  • Rosie Phillips (Instagram) - an art technician from North Norfolk.She participated in the 2022 series when she painted Big Zuu and was shortlisted. She completed her A Levels in 2019 and started her professional career as an artist. She likes expressionistic figurative paintings, and has an interest in storytelling and depicting moments and experiences from my life. In 2023, she participated in Royal Society of British Artists’ Bicentennial Exhibition (March), Affordable Art Fair Hampstead and The Jackson’s Painting Prize exhibition at Bankside Gallery
  • Neil Rogers ASGFA (Instagram) - He has been painting for over 30 years and runs regular art classes and workshops in his studio in the village of Alrewas In Staffordshire. He lives in Burton upon Trent. This was his self portrait
  • Fletcher Sibthorp (Instagram) - who lives in London. He's been painting on commission for over 30 years. His work has appeared in museums, offices album covers, theatre posters, company reports and even tattoos.
Recently, I participated in Sky Portrait Artist of the Year 2024, a rewarding experience that challenged me to create a portrait in just four hours. No mean feat, considering you’re surrounded and bombarded by a TV crew, an audience and interviewed constantly. There’s no room for error… or paint drying! Fletcher Sibthorp


The Self Portraits


Artists and presenter with the self portraits in the background

Wouldn't it be a great idea if this new view of the artists had them lined up in the same order as their self portraits are hung? I think Paul got the idea!

As you can see this is how the analysis of self portraits worked

FORMAT - everybody plumped for portrait format in this heat

  • Portrait format x 9
  • Landscape x 0
  • Square x 0

SIZE - no extremes of size and most avoided smaller sizes 

  • Very Large x 0
  • Large x 1
  • Large/Medium x 3
  • Medium x 3
  • Small x 2
  • Tiny x 0

SCOPE - much more content than usual in this heat - including two portraits with two portraits!

  • full size or most of body (including hand) x 3
  • head, shoulder and hand(s) x 4
  • head and upper torso (no hands) x 1
  • head and shoulders x 1
  • head x 0

Themes


Painting yourself twice

It was rather interesting to find that two artists had both chosen to include two views of their portrait in their self-portraits. 
  • Jack Hewitt The link in his name sgoes to the artworks in question
  • Fletcher Sibthorp - no link exists on either his website or Instagram - which is odd, but pic below. 
When you think about it, it's a great way of showing people you can do different angles, perspectives and even treatments. But, I guess, there's always the danger of looking "a little too clever"?
 
Fletcher Sibthorp with his self portrait

Replicating the pose from your portrait


We also had in this heat, artists who seemed to replicate what they did for their self portraits.

I think on the whole the Judges want to know
  • what more you can do and
  • in particular whether you can do more than one pose!
TIP: Replicating the pose from your self portrait is not a good look

Changing your practice for the heat
Four hours is not a long time. For many artists it's way shorter than the sort of time it normally takes them to paint a portrait. 

That's why many artists need to work out an approach to painting in four hours. This is usually and adaptation of their usual approach so it remains true to their technical expertise and aesthetic. 

Drawing / Painting the whole body


Interestingly in this heat, all three artists who were shortlisted had painted 
  • their whole body for the self portrait
  • the whole body of the sitter in the heat
  • created a background and set the scene
That's very unusual. I don't think I've ever seen it before. I did begin to wonder whether they picked them to make this point - because it was very odd.

So what would the point be? Well, the general sense I got from the Judges was they do like people who make the effort in the heat to:
  • paint more than just a head
  • portray the whole sitter
  • work out a relationship between the sitter and their object
  • it also indicates the kind of artist who is prepared to try harder and/or innovate
When you think about it, it's kind of insulting to the sitters to ask them to sit still for 4 hours and then just take their photo and then never look up from your tablet.....

Creating a scene


Setting the scene for a sitter is often something that artists skip and just fill in the back. Yet, the background - as in "a scene" - is not just something that animators do. One of the artists in this heat knows all about the latter!

TIP Good portrait painters are people who have learned their art by studying very many other portrait painters - and their paintings. 

Look at many (not PAOTY) paintings by good portrait artists.  There are a number of alternatives ways you can set a scene. For example:
  • The sitter is typically grounded and has context - review portraits in the National Portrait Gallery where artists often seek to 'explain' their sitter
  • The scene contributes to the explanation of who the person in the portrait is - sometimes through an objects or objects (for example the portrait of Dorothy Hodgkin by Maggi Hambling in the NPG)
  • The scene is "what is" eg look at many of the medium and larger portraits by Lucian Freud) hence peeling paintwork and bare boards and turpsy rags for Freud!
It's only small portraits these days which tend to lack and detail in the background.

Do remember the object does not have to sit on the podium next to the sitter. It can be represented in other ways as has happened in past heats.

Also remember, if you get to participate in PAOTY, that you do NOT ever need to include the painted background to your particular sitter. Some of which are jarring and crass and unhelpful (see the picture of the shortlisted artists below)

What are the issues of NOT setting a scene?

The main issue is yet another disembodied head. As in we've had an awful lot of them over time.

TIP: For me the thing I detest the most is the sloppily finished background where we still see the original colour of the ground - which can often jar with the painting itself.
At the very least:
  • the head needs to be placed correctly for the size of the support you work on i.e. make the profile and the placement matter!
  • the background needs to be completed in a way which looks intentional and FINISHED!
Any less and it really doesn't matter how good your self portrait was.

EXAMPLE: In this heat, an artist who I thought was an absolute racing certainty to be shortlisted - because of the quality of the self-portrait - opted for a "safe option" and just painted the head and didn't even fill the whole canvas with the colour painted for the background. 
  • the former I found a reasonable proposition, since an artist knows best how long it takes to get a likeness and make a good portrait
  • the latter was inexcusable. You just need to bring a big brush and whack in the paint in the background fast! If you don't know then practice!
I was really disappointed.

Doing more than you did for your entry


One artist (Sophia Kaur Hambleton-Grey ) did more in the heat than she did for her self portrait 
  • she painted larger
  • she developed a background with the sitter's object
  • she then researched the place where the sitter associated herself with - and painted that as the background as well!!
I think she also finished early.

In a lot of ways, she was my winner - simply for having the nerve to go big and push the content and colour.


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The Portraits and the Judging


The Judges judging

Below is:
  • which artist's portrait was chosen by which sitter 
  • who the Judges shortlisted
  • the artist who won this heat


Who the Sitter Chose


This week I thought I was going to be unable to use the Instagram summary of the three portraits for each sitter. So left a rude comment on my Facebook page about their absence - and guess what appeared a little while later!! :) 

Martha Carney

Martha Carney chose the portrait by Jack which I thought was a good choice.

Bottom right - portrait by Jack Hewitt

Kevin McCloud

Kevin went for his side glance at his axe by Paul Martin! It was amazing how "alive" that portrait was. You can see a better version of it below.....

Bottom: a third of the painting of Kevin by Paul Martin

Heather Mills

This was by far the best sections re portraits of the face/head.  Heather was very moved by the painting top left by Sophia Kaur Hambleton-Grey who included the prosthetic leg AND the scenery from the place where Heather won her medals - because she looked up the location on her phone! This was the one she chose.

Portraits of Heather Mills by
top left  Sophia Kaur Hambleton-Grey 
top right Kitty Bellamy
bottom: Fletcher Sibhtorp

To me this was a face which has "had a lot of work" done on it. Plus she kept a deadpan look throughout and was an excellent sitter.

I thought Fletcher had the best head/face, with Kitty probably being a close second for getting the best likeness. Sophia's colours were great - but slightly comic book like. 

The big disappointment for me was Kitty's background which was of course particularly highlighted given the backgrounds on the two other paintings.

The Shortlist

This is about who the Judges chose for their shortlist. Their comments would suggest there was no contest - but that's not how I saw it - or a lot of other viewers.

Waiting to hear who is being shortlisted

The shortlist for the place in the Semi Final comprised:
  • Paul Martin
  • Sophia Kaur Hambleton-Grey
  • Rosie Phillips
This is when the Judges need to work out which three combinations of self portrait and heat portrait do they like the best.

Below are the pics of the self portrait next to the heat portrait for all three artists

Before you go on, which artist do you think won/should have won?

Paintings by the shortlisted artists

Paul Martin

Self portrait and heat painting by Paul Martin

I liked Paul's paintings. He'd achieved a lot with his self portrait was both a painting of him and his late wife. Plus he's one of the very few artists, since they introduced the "object" who created a painting which made sense of it. 

Plus proportions were all correct (maybe Kevin's hands a bit too large) but to me he was a confident painter who made good design decisions and produced interesting paintings.

I was leaning towards him as my winner and if he had done I would not have been disappointed and I would have been very pleased for him.


Sophia Kaur Hambleton-Grey




For me, her self portrait was good enough to get selected but not good enough to provide an "ace combo" for the future should she progress further. I think nudity in self portrait is rarely going to progress beyond the heats.

I think the judges admired what she did with combining the sitter, the prosthetic and the scenery from where she lives in Austria - but maybe crammed it all in and somehow made it work - but it didn't actually work really well as it was a very busy painting. I kept thinking Heather's prosthetic leg was going to hit her on the head!

I think the replication of the pose probably counted against her. These Judges like to see something new.

Rosie Phillips

Self portrait and heat painting by Rosie Phillips

The self portrait was interesting and imposing and large. I've always maintained that painting large self portraits can pay off in major ways come the heats. 

I couldn't quite work out what the background was supposed to be and I oscillated between being irritated by it and wanting to keep working it out. 

For me, there were issues with the heat portrait which for some reason the Judges seemed to like
  • I just couldn't get past the fact Kevin looked very young and NOT 65 years old (which is what he is) - and a likeness relates to age as well as looks!!! (Speaking from my new peak age of 70!)
  • I hated the perspective foreshortened enlarged boot. In her self portrait, the foreshortening was OK, in the heat painting it was just plain ridiculous.
and so, to the decision for the three shortlisted artists

line up for the announcement of who has won

PAOTY 2024 Episode 5 Winner


The winner of Episode 6 was Rosie Phillips - the artist who painted a very young Kevin McCloud with a tiny head from a distorted perspective - but didn't get chosen by the sitter.

I have to say my mouth dropped. I had her down as coming in third place.   

I'd be extremely surprised if she progressed beyond the semis.

She's not a bad painter, and she can certainly paint a large portrait but she's just not a heat winner in my eyes....

Rosie Phillips with her heat painting


Next episode (the last heat): The Sitters

Two women and a man as sitters in the final heat next week. They are:

  • RebeccaTaylor/Self-Esteem (Musician), Rebecca Lucy Taylor is also known by her stage name Self Esteem. She is a British musician, songwriter and actress.
  • 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.
  • Dr Karan Rajan (Public Health Advocate) - an NHS surgeon and one of the biggest health and science creators on social media

Previous episodes in Series 11

Reviews & Learning Points (PAOTY Series 5-11)


Series 11 of PORTRAIT ARTIST OF THE YEAR (Autumn 2024)


Series 10 of PORTRAIT ARTIST OF THE YEAR (Autumn 2023)


Series 9 of PORTRAIT ARTIST OF THE YEAR (Autumn 2022)

Plus

Series 8 of PORTRAIT ARTIST OF THE YEAR (Autumn 2021)


Series 7 of PORTRAIT ARTIST OF THE YEAR (Autumn 2020)


Series 6 of PORTRAIT ARTIST OF THE YEAR (Spring 2020)


Series 5 of PORTRAIT ARTIST OF THE YEAR (Winter/Spring 2019)


Series 4 of PORTRAIT ARTIST OF THE YEAR (Winter / Spring 2018)

PLUS if you want to find out more.....
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