This is about the first six artists who achieved the title of
Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year. (Series 1-6) The year at the end of each heading below relates to the year the series was broadcast and not the year it was filmed.
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| Portraits of Amir Khan and Sir Ian McKellen painted by Christian Hook |
Today's post is about
- Series 1: Nick Lord
- Series 2: Christian Hook
- Series 3: Gareth Reid
- Series 4: Samira Addo
- Series 5: Duncan Shoosmith
- Series 6: Christobel Blackburn
Links to their websites are embedded in their names.
Nick Lord - Series 1 (2013)
The very first series began with heats held in London, Cardiff,
Glasgow and Dublin.
He was born and raised in Cardiff. He studied for a BA in Fine Art at
Kingston University and graduated in July 2011 with a BA in Fine Art First
Class Honours from Kingston University
- He painted Gavin Henson in his Cardiff heat.
- For the Final
- he was commissioned to paint Lance Sergeant Johnson Beharry VC
- and he painted Sophie Dahl in Paris - with the other artists
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The unveiling of Nick Lord's commissioned portrait for the Final
of Lance Corporal Johnson Beharry VC |
After winning the series, as his prize, he was then commissioned to
paint a portrait of double-Booker author Hilary Mantel for The British
Library
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| Nick Lord with Hilary Mantel at the unveiling at the British Library. |
Oddly, I can identify an Instagram account but no website. He also
did not participate in the Portrait Artist of the Decade programme
to celebrate 10 series of Portrait Artist of the Year and there is
no bio that I can find about his subsequent career.
Christian Hook - Series 2 (2014)
I find that Christian Hook is probably the artist who gets mentioned most by those thinking back to who was the artist that had the most impact on them or the one they liked the most.
He has an amazing ability to use contemporary texhnciques and yet get a good likeness every time. He combines accurate portraits which really look like the sitter with Gerhard Richter type swipes of paint.
For the final he painted- Sir Ian McKellen in 4 hours
- a very large painting of Amir Khan for his commissioned portrait
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Waiting to hear who has won Series 2 of PAOTY Christian Hook in the middle has the two biggest portraits from the 4 hour painting in the Final Session and the commission completed beforehand |
Never ever underestimate the impact of very good portraits in the Final which are also very big!
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| Honey Jar - the portrait of actor Alan Cuming by Christian Hook |
......was subsequently chosen by John Leighton, director of the
National Galleries of Scotland, as one of the best 100 paintings in
its collection.
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It's also recently been on view in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
This is a video about it.
His series was in 2014 and I think it was broadcast early 2015. This
is what he had to say about it.
This is not a gimmicky programme. There is no humiliation or personal probing, just a real search for talent. Taking part was such a positive experience. It helps you to see the strengths and weaknesses of your own work. Aside from that, it is a really fun day and you are surrounded by like-minded people. This is a programme that is serious about unearthing talent and it gives you an amazing opportunity to get your work noticed by a wider audience. (Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year website)Christian Hook was born in Gibraltar. He studied illustration at Middlesex University, London, leading to a successful career as an illustrator whilst also lecturing on the art of illustration at the Royal College of Art and other universities.
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Portrait of Dame Judi Dench by Christian Hook for the Portrait Artist of the Decade programme |
However he was a very busy artist in the years immediately following
his win.
2017
- Awarded 'Freedom of the city Gibraltar"
- Exhibition on board the Queen Victoria
- 2 hour Live painting of Kristin Scott Thomas for cover of Financial Times ‘How to spend it magazine’ - Paris
2016
- 2 hour Live painting of the Maharaja of Jodhpur - India
- 2 hour Live painting of Joan Bakewell for Sky Arts Awards
- 2 hour Live painting of British Actor Simon Callow
- Chronos - solo show clarendon gallery London
- Children in Crisis exhibition at Clarendon Gallery
- 'Honey Jar' - Portrait of Alan Cumming selected by Lord Leighton as one of the100 masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland
- Sky Arts documentary -Painting Mick Hucknall, Fabrice Muamba and Sue Johnston
- Winner of Sky Arts Portrait Artist Of The Year - UK
- Exhibition at National Portrait Gallery
- Portrait of Alan Cumming (Actor) in Scottish National Portrait Gallery - Permanent Collection
- Portrait of Amir Khan (world champion boxer) in Bolton Museum Art Gallery's Permanent Collection
- Featured on 'Little book of Portraits' by Quadrille publishers
- Featured on the book 'portrait in a day' by Quadrille publishers
- Portraits of Sarah Ferguson (Duchess of York), Alan Cumming, Sir Ian McKellen, Daniella Nardini, Richard Dawkins, Sally Hitchiner
- Solo Exhibition - Clarendon Gallery
A survey of his work listed on the Clarendon Gallery and the
websites suggests he
has
started working in digital media
and
also started to paint horses.
Gareth Reid - Series 3 (2017)
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Gareth Reid's £10K commission portrait of Graham Norton
for the National Gallery of Ireland.
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Gareth Reid (Instagram) is one of my favourite artists in the entire series. Possibly because he places so much emphasis on drawing well.
Also because for me he will always the Gareth Reid who I first met at
the National Portrait Gallery back in 2008 when he was responsible for
what I still think of as one of the best BP Travel Award Exhibitions
in the history of the award - see
BP Travel Award: Gareth Reid and the Finnish winter bathers (June 2008).
Gareth was also selected as the winner the Series 10 paintoff between the winners of the different series by Sarah Howgate, the National Portrait Gallery's Senior Curator, Contemporary Collections.
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Gareth Reid's charcoal drawing of Dame Judi Dench - no flash - just solid drawing and a very good likeness |
Prior to that he of course won won Series 3.
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| PAOTY Series 3: waiting to hear who won |
In the Final he:
- painted a portrait of Tom Courtenay in four hours in the Final
- painted a commission of Justice Cheema-Grubb - which rather broke the mould in terms of portraits of Judges and also showed the Judges he also did colour!
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Two charcoal and pastel drawings by Gareth Reid in the PAOTY
Series 3 Final |
He then painted Graham Norton for the National Gallery of Ireland - at which point they found out they were related!
It turns out that Mr Reid’s great-grandmother is the sister of Mr Norton’s great-grandfather. They only found out when they met to start the portrait. Gareth Reid is Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2017
This is what he had to say about the series
I’d describe the past year as exciting, stressful, exhausting, affirming, and pure fun. The other artists and the crew are all so lovely that it`s a joy to take part in. They were very special days that will live long in the memory, and the impact that the exposure has had on my career has been huge. I wish I could do it all again but I have work to get on with! (Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year website)
Since he won, he's been a very busy man. He now takes
worldwide enquiries for commissions for portraits and his
bio has a long list of prestigious commissions
- he's been commissioned twice to paint a portrait of King Charles III - by both The Royal Collections and in 2019 for Historic Royal Palaces for Hillsborough Castle.
- he's also taken a number of institutional commissions to paint a portrait (eg Lord Mayors, University Chancellors and Archbishops) which is bread and butter for most portrait artists and appears to be favoured by both sides of the border in Ireland!
- he's drawn and painted a LOT of commissions for private collections - including drawings of children
I even met up with him recently at the Imperial War Museum for a film
they were making
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Gareth Reid being filmed while sketching and making
notes about "Gassed" by John Singer Sargent (while being drawn by me sketching the painting!) |
Also, for those who might be interested, he's teaching a portrait
workshop next year in County Cavan in Ireland
- details below.
Samira Addo - Series 4 (2018)
I got myself a subscription for NOW TV and started watching and reviewing in 2018.
Samira Addo was the winner of Sky Arts' Portrait Artist of the Year in
2018. Here's my first review of the PAOTY Final Review: The Final of Portrait Artist of the Year 2018
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| Emile Sande with Samira Addo and her Final portrait of Emile |
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The 2018 Final - Samira Addo Commission Portrait of Zandra Rhodes and Final 4 hour portrait of Emile Sande |
As part of her win, she received a £10,000 commission to paint actor
Kim Cattrall for the National Museums Liverpool permanent collection
at the Walker Art Gallery.
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Portrait of Kim Cattrall by Samira Addo Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool (how come they are not both stood on the left so we see more than their backs) |
I asked Google AI whether Kim Cattrall supported Everton - given I'm
looking for a reason for the blue hair.
No, actress Kim Cattrall is a lifelong supporter of Liverpool FC, not Everton Google AI
I actually can't think of a worse insult for a lifelong Liverpool fan
- and I admire Kim Cattrall for remaining her professional actress
self.
I'm afraid I disliked that portrait so very much that I could not
write a review in case I said what I really thought. I'm happy to say
I'm not a fan of Samira Addo's portraits.
This competition came at such a pivotal time for me and I’m so glad I took the leap! Every experience from the 4 hour challenges, to meeting my sitters, to working with the crew has been a pleasure. It’s been great to be in an environment where there are artists from all walks of life, to see and learn how they work and even though it’s a competition the general vibe is uplifting and supportive. I feel my work has actually developed throughout the process and it has given me confidence as well as great exposure. What Samira had to say for the Sky Arts press release at the time
On her website there's not a lot to see. I'm unclear as to
whether or not she is a full time artist - portrait or otherwise.
- I'm not seeing any exhibitions listed - although I know she has participated in CBPP ones - using a style which is more realistic - until I realised it was actually her self portrait from PAOTY.
- there are a few portraits on display on her website
- plus a quite a bit of background associated with the PAOTY competition and two or three things which have happened since
However there is more on
her Instagram
where she is listed as Mimma.A
But, to be truthful, based on what I can see it doesn't look to me
like this much vaunted springboard to success has delivered very
much. There again, that might be down to presentation or a lack of updating.....
Duncan Shoosmith Series 5 (2019)
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The three finalists and a lot of cameramen getting in the
way! - and you wonder why I stopped being picky about only painting from life! |
Duncan Shoosmith (Instagram) won the final of Series 5 which was filmed in June 2018 and
broadcast in early 2019. See my review Duncan Shoosmith is Portrait Artist of the Year 2019 - which includes a summary of the interview with him about
his approach to portraiture.
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| Duncan Shoosmith self portrait and his paintings from Series 5 |
The reason I know is I watched Duncan Shoosmith's Final quite
accidentally.
I was in the National Portrait Gallery for the Press View for the BP
Portrait Award on 18 June 2018 and, first of all noticed the Judges
in the Building as the BP Portrait Winner and I looked around for
somewhere quiet for a video interview. So after completing the
interview and having lunch I went for a wander around the Gallery
and came across the large room where the Final was being held.
Naturally I stayed - and then started to take photos - which is why
we have
a complete album of what it's like on Facebook - see Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2019 FINAL
He painted Laura Linney in the Final and then Dame Cleo Laine for
the commission portrait - which was a total knockout!
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Commission Painting of Dame Cleo Laine
and Final 4 hour Portrait by Duncan Shoosmith
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This is a simply STUNNING portrait of Dame Cleo Laine which would merit hanging in the National Portrait Gallery. As the Judges indicated, the strength and personality of the sitter was rendered in a very powerful way.You can now see it at the Jazz centre in the Dankworth Exhibition Space.
He went on to paint Sir Tom Jones for the £10,000 Commission - which is
now part of the collection at the National Museum of Wales.
Duncan is one of my favourite PAOTY winners - and is also a very
nice man.
That's not just because he said my mantra around people need to
practice doing four hour paintings led him to doing lots - of anybody
who would sit for him. He's always at the back of my mind when I
continue to repeat the need to practice painting in four hours or less
- because I know one portrait painter who won a major competition
because that's just what he did! It cannot ever be repeated too much.
I never ever understand the people who turn up at a heat having done
no practising.
His website is just like him - very quiet about his achievements.
However he does now have artwork in many private collections
worldwide, and (like the other PAOTY winners) is a member of The
Contemporary British Portrait Painters where he exhibits.
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PAOTY winners exhibiting at the CBPP exhibition in 2024. I made them all line up! (Lto R: Samira Addo, Duncan Shoosmith, Curtis Holder, Morag Caister and Wendy Barratt) |
Like very many portrait painters, he's also developed a side line
subject which gives him a break from people and keeps his hand in
during a break between commissions. Like many other portrait painters,
his subject is flowers. I guess this predeliction for flowers is
because, like faces, they have many nuances in terms of structure,
tone and colour and are a great way of honing skills without having to
paint another face. He now does great contemporary paintings of
peonies and I'm guessing enjoys the sales that also accrue to great
flower painters!
This is what I wrote about Christabel Blackburn for the semi final
episode in Series 6
Christabel Blackburn (Instagram)
Christabel Blackburn Series 6 (Spring 2020)
Christabel Blackburn (Instagram)
- an artist who studies and specialises in the human form.
- Degree in Classics at Newcastle University followed by studying portraiture at the Charles Cecil Studios in Florence. She then completed her training in figurative drawing, painting and sculpting at The London Atelier of Representational Art.
- Her style is pared down and minimalist.
- Participated in PAOTY 2018. Her very spare but jewel-like portrait of Meera Syal was chosen by the sitter but she didn't get shortlisted.
I actually watched her in the Semi Final....
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Christobel Blackburn in the Series 6 Semi Final (filmed in
2019) (my photo) |
....and had her listed as one who would make the Final
Christabel Blackburn - in part because her Heat Painting of Adrian (Line of Duty) Dunbar. Her sparse minimalistic lush way of painting grew on me as the paintings progressed. I loved what she did with the hair! (see below) I liked tthe fact she painted what she saw as the essence of Elaine rather than the blingy theatrical background. She saw her as a happy person and felt the yellow suited her better. Oddly, I kept thinking she looked familiar and it took until I wrote this review for me to realise I'd seen her paint previously in the Heat I watched at the Wallace Collection in (see Review: Episode 8 of Portrait Artist of the Year 2018.) - where Meera Syal chose her painting (Review: Semi-Final of Portrait Artist of the Year 2020)
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Having watched the semi final and having found out when the
Final might be, I knew which room to head to at the NPG! An insight into what the final looks like - Christobel on right |
In the Final she painted
- Lemm Sissay in 4 hours - which I also watched - see my Facebook Album of Photos of the Portrait Artist of the Year 2020 Final held at the NPG on 28th May 2019. These give you a very good sense of what a Final looks like "for real".
- and a commission portrait of Willard Wigan, a British micro-sculptor who produces the world's smallest sculptures in the eye of a needle. What I didn't get to see were the commission portraits!
.jpg)
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Final (4 hour) portrait of Lemm Sissay and Willard Wigan by Christobel Blackburn |
Her commission was a total gift - she got
Nile Rodgers (link goes to the portrait on her website)
Somehow or other the posts about the Final and the Commission "fell
off my to do" list but I seem to recall that it aired around about the
time that Covid kicked off and I think my mind was on other things
My semi final post didn't get posted until April 2020 - in which I
commented
In this discombulated world we're living in at the moment, I'm hearing from artists who can't paint. I've also been affected in terms of long posts - hence the very long delay before this review has been posted.So I can only apologise profusely to Christobel Blackburn for her big moments dropping off my agenda at the time
It all seems so very disconnected from real life.
Since 2020
- Her website includes
- portraits that indicate a number of commissions
- but also strong contemporary figurative paintings which, I think, might well be her preferred artwork. They very much remind me of California and Hockney and I like their simplicity and careful choice of colours.
- her website bio now includes an appreciation by Kate Bryan who also appears to be commissioning her to produce work for Soho House - where Bryan is the Global Director of Art.
- Her Instagram documents all her various activities
- she is also selling direct to members of Soho House at members only events in their venues.
- she collaborates with fellow creatives - see above for one example
- she gets featured in magazines
- she's also much involved with creating art to assist charities
- ....and her Instagram also gets to go to parties at the Royal Academy of Art!
Overall, it looks like Christobel Blackburn very much continues to develop her art - maintaining her contemporary style but expanding where, how and when she creates and exhibits.
I'd very much now characterise her now as a contemporary figurative artist who also paints portraits.
As a footnote - it's off that Christobel started out as a student in Florence - those studies much maligned by the Judges over the series as a whole - but which teach you how to draw believable figures in space!
As a footnote - it's off that Christobel started out as a student in Florence - those studies much maligned by the Judges over the series as a whole - but which teach you how to draw believable figures in space!
It's also worth remembering that Christobel won the second time she participated - but was not even shortlisted the first time. As she recounts in her comment about the series
Being a part of Portrait Artist is hard to describe as it meant so much to me. Terrifying, character building, fun, exhausting, exhilarating and enriching, it changed my life and built my confidence which was drastically lacking. Everyone who works on the show is lovely, and sharing the experience with the other contestants has forged invaluable relationships. I am so grateful to everyone who makes this incredible show and to the awe inspiring judges who I’ve looked up to for years and never dreamed they’d be saying my name at the end of the 2020 show. To anyone who is considering entering and is on the fence- do it. And to those that didn’t get through first time… try again! That happened to me and I won second time round. You won’t regret it.
A reminder that you can find out more about the winners of Series 7
to 11 in PAOTY - What are the winners doing now? (series 7- 11)
Plus, if you want to keep up with my reviews of Artist of the Year, you
can subscribe - details below
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