MAKING A MARK: Derwent Art Prize

Showing posts with label Derwent Art Prize. Show all posts

Monday, April 08, 2024

Review: The 7th Derwent Art Prize (2024) Exhibition

This is a summary of my thoughts about the Derwent Art Prize Exhibition at gallery@OXO. This is in addition to:

my review of the prizewinners - see Derwent Art Prize Exhibition 2024 - Prizewinners
my Making A Mark Facebook Page Album of views of the exhibition - The Derwent Art Prize 2024

The aim of the Derwent Art Prize Exhibition is to

reward excellence by showcasing the very best artworks made in pencil by artists from around the world.
showcase c.80 artworks in an exhibition.

The Prize invites artists to submit the very best 2D and 3D artworks created in any pencil, including colour, water soluble, pastel, graphite and charcoal pencils.

This year, the Judges shortlisted just 68 artworks, however 2 artworks did not make it on to the walls because they got stuck in Customs! See the end for tips for getting your work through Customs

I'm writing this post essentially for all those who might like to submit artwork to the next Derwent Art Prize because, although you can see the images online, you cannot see how they are presented.

That said, judgement is always on the basis of the digital image of the art.

Artwork at the entrance
varying sizes, subjects and presentation

My perspective on the Derwent Art Prize Exhibition 2024

First off, the main point I want to emphasise is that there is a lot of exceptionally good artwork in this exhibition. I'm guessing that the reputation of the Prize - and the fact it's still going - means that this prize attracts many more professional artists these days as well as young / aspiring / emerging artists.

For me, the appeal of the exhibition is that:

it often presents novel perspectives on the very ordinary
as well as extraordinary insights into the very unusual.
ALL delivered while demonstrating an exceptional degree of technical accomplishment.

Essentially, it's NOT artwork which is technically good but actually dull - as much hyperealistic artwork can be.

Nor is it exciting concepts which are then delivered by people lacking in skills associated with creating art - which is the sort of art I hate.

To get selected, the artwork has to move mind or spirit AND also be executed by somebody who demonstrates they're very good at wielding the media used for pencil art.

For me, it has come on a lot since the very first exhibition - which I remember really well because it demonstrated news of thinking and recording in pencil media.

I'd just like to see some 3D artwork next time!

PS There are emphatically no cats, dogs or horses or any other sort of animal mammal in this exhibition! There is one very dead bird.... (Just saying....)

The exhibition demonstrates a wide diversity in terms of

styles
subject matter
size
age of the artist
country where the artist lives

It is truly international - with over 6,000 entries by 2,324 artists from 77 countries.

That means it's getting an entry way bigger than most of the prominent open art exhibitions of national art societies! One might be tempted to ask what is this art competition offering that other open exhibitions are not. My answer would be "big cash prizes". Any time you have an art competition with very significant cash prizes you get a lot of entries.

Friday, April 05, 2024

Derwent Art Prize Exhibition 2024 - Prizewinners

Yesterday, I visited The Derwent Art Prize 2024 Exhibition at gallery@oxo in London and this post is a review of the exhibition and the competition.

the Derwent Art Prize is now very much an international prize and one seen as prestigious to the careers of young up and coming illustrators. (from my review of the 2020 Exhibition)
This is my first post about the Derwent Art Prize - focusing on the prizewinners.

My second will come shortly and will focus on the exhibition.

I'll also be uploading my photos of the exhibition to a folder on my Facebook Page

The Derwent Art Prize - the competition

What's remarkable about this art competition is that:

It has more entries than most national art societies: This competition received more than 6,000 entries
It attracts entries from a very large number of countries: entries were received from 77 countries,
68 artworks - of a very high standard - were selected for The Derwent Art Prize Exhibition
Five artists received over £13,000 in prizes at the opening, on Wednesday 3 April 2024. (see below)

At the end of this post you can see my posts reviewing previous exhibitions.

The exhibition is free to visit at gallery@oxo, London

from 11am to 6pm, from 4th April to 13th April, and
from 11am to 2pm on the closing day, 14th April 2024,
with daily artist demonstrations.

Derwent Art Prize 2024: Prizewinners

Three of the prizewinners

The shortlist and winners were chosen by an international panel of art professionals:

Sergio Gomez, Miami-based artist and gallery director;
Curtis Holder, London-based artist;
Valérie Sonnier, artist and professor, Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris; and
Helen Waters, Director, Cristea Roberts, London.

First Prize (£4,000 and a year's supply of Derwent Art Products)

This was awarded to June Collier for Hetty in Hospital 1.

FIRST PRIZE
June Collier Hetty in hospital - 2020
oil paint and pencil on canvas - 80cm x 65cm

All four selectors were profoundly moved by the depth of sensibility displayed in this work, stirring profound emotion.

Tuesday, November 09, 2021

Call for Entries: Derwent Art Prize 2022

The 6th Derwent Art Prize is a major INTERNATIONAL art competition for artists working in dry media - and is now open for entries.

Deadline for entries is Tuesday 4 January 2022 (5pm GMT)

Below you can find out about this major art prize, the prizes on offer in 2022, the selectors and the exhibition and, most importantly how the call for Entries works

The Derwent Art Prize was conceived in 2012 and aims to reward excellence by showcasing the very best artworks created in pencil by artists from around the world.

The Derwent Art Prize is a global art competition with a prize pot of some £12,500.

The exhibition was conceived in 2012 and has been consistently sponsored by Derwent, the internationally renowned fine art brand since that date. It is

A Biennial Open Exhibition
Open to artists from around the world; and
Rewards excellence by showcasing the very best 2D & 3D artworks created in pencil or coloured pencil, pastels, graphite and charcoal.

Last time, this exhibition was held in 2020, there were:

4,756 entries
submitted by 1,884 artists
from 72 different countries.
The Derwent Art Prize judges selected a shortlist of 70 pieces.

The last Derwent Art Prize exhibition in a gallery - at the Mall Galleries in 2018

The Prizes

CONGRATULATIONS TO DERWENT for maintaining the prize fund in an era when many commercial / organisational sponsors have been turning their faces to the wall and leaving formerly prestigious art prizes to disappear.

I also like the fact that the main prize fund pot is equally split across

all entrants and
those aged 25 years and under.

Derwent Art Prizewinners with Selectors in 2016

Prizes valued at £12,500 will be awarded to entries selected for the exhibition at the Private View at the Exhibition at the Gallery@OXO, London.

A total prize fund of £12,500 will be awarded. Prizes are as follows:

Derwent Art Prize (£6,000)

First Prize £4,000 plus a year’s supply of Derwent products**
Second Prize £2,000

Young Artist Prize - for artists under 25 years (£6,000)

Young Artist First Prize (For artists under 25 years) £4,000 *
Young Artist Second Prize (For artists under 25 years) £2,000

People’s Choice Award £500

All the First and Second prize winners will also receive a special box of Derwent Lightfast Pencils which have a core which is resistant to prolonged colour change- meaning artwork hung in archival/museum conditions will not fade for up to 100 years.

The Selectors

This year’s entries will be judged by a panel of selectors comprising an artist, a critic and a curator. a fourth Judge is to be announced.

Katy Hessel - a London-based art historian, curator, podcaster, and founder of the influential Instagram, @thegreatwomenartists.

Writing and speaking about art history in an accessible and fun manner, my goal is to readdress the gender imbalance in the art world by reinserting women back into the canon of art history.

Paul Hobson - Director of Modern Art Oxford -

he has worked for more than twenty years in the art world in senior roles for the Contemporary Art Society, The Showroom, the Serpentine Gallery, and Royal Academy of Arts in London. He has been Director of Modern Art Oxford since 2013.

Charmaine Watkiss - Artist - pencil and paper are her main materials of choice

Her work is concerned with what she calls ‘memory stories’. She creates these stories primarily through research connected to the African Caribbean diaspora, and then maps the stories onto life sized figures.

The Exhibition

From the open submission applications the panel will select approximately 80 works for exhibition.

At the bottom of the page you can find my previous reviews of this art competition, the prizewinners and the exhibitions - and see the diverse range of artwork which has been selected in the last eight years.

The exhibition will be held at Gallery@OXO in central London will be from 24 February – 6 March 2022.

This is situated on the Riverside Walkway at the heart of one of the richest cultural areas of London, between the London Eye, The Hayward Gallery and Tate Modern.

How to enter the Derwent Art Prize

Who can enter

Entries are invited from international artists

What can you enter

Artists may only enter once, with a maximum of 6 images.

Tuesday, July 20, 2021

Count the number of art competitions that no longer exist....

The only thing that is certain in this world is "change".

Which is why, one of the things that is certain in the art world is that art competitions change over time.

What's surprising me right now is just how many of the more major competitions in the UK have completely disappeared in recent time.

I last wrote about this prior to lockdown back in early 2020 in The Disappearing Art Competitions
Since when we've had confirmation more have been lost and the art competition 'maketplace' has changed significantly in the UK.

I thought it was time for AN UPDATE. Below I list those art competitions

which will not be taking place in 2021
which still exist and will take place
those replacing past competitions
minor art competions

plus why art competitions are important to artists.

By way of a preamble, I am absolutely convinced this is all about two things:

FIRST we're still experiencing coronavirus interruptus syndrome, i.e. the very long "stall" associated with not knowing when things are going to get back to normal. Right now I don't expect thing to approach normal until 2022 - but I do also expect people to be planning for this right now!

SECOND there is an absolute DEARTH of key components for a prestigious art competition. These are:

key people whose networks enable them to prize out sponsorship money from corporate bodies which can afford it
strategic thinking within some regional museums - in relation to the traffic which can be generated by a good art competition
organisations which want to be associated with significant art prizes.
organisations with expertise and practical experience in developing efficient and effective art competitions with significant prizes (i.e. why are we losing all these top art competitions?)

By way of contrast, I am also noticing that some national art societies are getting very good at generating / replacing very good levels of sponsorship for prizes for their open exhibitions.

I now highlight clearly those national art societies which people should take a close look at on the basis of prize money alone.
This should make artists think about whether they are applying for the right open exhibitions! PROMPT to my recent client: this is what I was talking about! :)

Art Competitions that no longer exist in 2021

BP Portrait Award

The last BP Portrait exhibition in the NP

Friday, April 24, 2020

Katie Sollohub wins Derwent Art Prize 2020

Yesterday the Prizewinners in the 5th Derwent Art Prize - sponsored by Derwent were announced. See Derwent blog post.

This blog post is about the prizewinners, the exhibition and how you can vote for the People's Choice Award.

Plus a comment about the experience of viewing competition artwork as a digital file in 3D software

Prizewinners

see the artworks which won prizes
find out about the artists who created them

Exhibition

find out about the new arrangements for the exhibition in the current coronavirus context
learn how to view the exhibition online
issues arising from digital images and 3D software

People's Choice Award

learn how to vote for your favourite artwork in the online exhibition

This was my blog post about the Call for Entries - 5th Derwent Art Prize 2020. You can see more blog posts about past Derwent art prize exhibitions at the end of this blog post.

Prizewinners

The first thing that struck me was that the Derwent Art Prize is now very much an international prize and one seen as prestigious to the careers of young up and coming illustrators.

Two of the prizewinners - the winners of the Young Artist Awards - are both Chinese - although one currently lives in the USA.

The next thing which struck me was that both winners of the main awards are women. (Cheers!)

I can't think what's happened to men who use drawing materials - but I dare say there are a fair few in the exhibition (of which more below)

First Prize

The First Prize of £4,000 plus a year’s supply of Derwent products was awarded to Blue Bedchamber (Strawberry Hill House) by Katie Sollohub

Winner of Derwent Art Prize First Prize
Blue Bedchamber (Strawberry Hill House), 2017 by Katie Sollohub
60 x 84cm cm (h x w), charcoal on paper
£850

Effortlessly evoking a feeling of light and breeze, her winning piece represents Strawberry Hill House in Twickenham, a heritage site where she worked in 2017.

Nationality: British
Occupation:

artist (in residency or working on commission / "roaming residencies") and
art teacher (teaching art to all ages for over 20 years)

Current home: Shoreham on Sea, Sussex
Art education: studied Social Anthropology at Sussex University and Fine Art at Northbrook College
Previous appearances in this award: none
Website: https://www.katiesollohub.co.uk/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/KatieSollohubsCreativeJourneys/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katiesollohub/
Twitter https://twitter.com/katiesollohub
Previous Competitions: Lynn Painter Stainers Prize (2015-2016); ING Discerning Eye (2015); RA Summer Show
Previous Awards: Awarded £9,500 grant from Arts Council England to undertake Guest in Turner’s House residency, Twickenham
Title / Media: Blue Bedchamber (Strawberry Hill House) 2017, 60 x 84cm cm (h x w), charcoal on paper

Her interests include

documenting and recording the places she lives and works in through drawings, paintings, performance, photography and poetry.
drawing and painting the interiors of buildings - on commission

Katie’s work explores the narrative components surrounding objects, memories, interior and exterior spaces, brought to life with her spectacular use of colour and detail.

As a teacher she champions drawing as a fundamental element of art practice.

Monday, February 24, 2020

The Disappearing Art Competitions

Has anybody noticed the disappearing art competitions?

Here's my summary of where I think we are up to

The Bad News: Art Competitions which no longer exist - and why that might be happening
Big Question Mark: Art Competitions with a BIG query
Good News: Art Competitions being held in 2020

PLUS

Why art competitions are important
TOP TIPS for art competitions (the ones that are left!)

The Threadneedle Prize Preview in 2016

What I find most sad is that both art competitions for figurative art seem to have disappeared at the same time.

BAD NEWS: Art Competitions which no longer exist

The following art competitions have definitely finished.

The Threadneedle Prize

The Columbia Threadneedle Prize - Figurative Art today (formerly known as The Threadneedle Prize) was a major art prize with a big money prize. Latterly the first prize also included a solo exhibition in the Threadneedle Space at the Mall Galleries.

finished after running for a decade
This was my blog post looking back - After The Threadneedle Prize + a recap of past winners and what happened next

The Threadneedle Prize in 2016

The National Open Art Competition

closed in 2018
no sign of a resurrection
website indicates it's "postponed until further notice" - which is the phrase I always associate with "hope over experience" people who are reluctant to give up but have no reasonable expectation of anything changing.

Why's it happening?

At a guess:

expenses exceed income
sponsors disappear or die
unsuccessful at securing new long term sponsorship
merits of the exhibition no longer attract quality entries
marketing has become more difficult and must involve quality social media marketing
competition has become tired and needs to be reinvigorated
the benefits vs costs equation no longer makes sense to the main sponsor

BIG ??? - Art Competitions with a query

Lynn Painter Stainers competition - back in 2014

Lynn Painter-Stainers

The Worshipful Company of Painter-Stainers records the history of the Prize - but says nothing about the future or the date of the next exhibition
There's no website for the competition
It's disappeared off the Parker Harris website - and I got no response to enquiries about it

I'm wondering if the Lynn Foundation have backed out and/or are in a state of suspended animation.

Guy Parsons OBE who was CEO and a Trustee of the Lynn Foundation died in September 2019. He ran the charity after he set it up in 1985 for his client Mr Lynn, who invested millions of pounds into the cause.
It's unclear how this art competition contributed to the main purpose of the Lynn Foundation - which primarily targeted the advancement of health or saving of lives.

I'd say this art competition is not happening this year. I'd say there's a very good chance it won't reappear unless another sponsor steps up......

BP Portrait Award

Aleah Chapin wins the BP Portrait Award 2012

In 2020 the BP Portrait Award 2020 will

presumably continue to hang fewer portraits due to the more confined space - see Call for Entries: BP Portrait Award 2020 (Part 1)
have a much shorter and earlier exhibition

date of the exhibition in London has changed - to May and June.
AND it's much shorter - just five weeks

which will result in much less exposure for the artists and fewer visitors to the exhibition

We still do not know what will happen to the BP Portrait Award when the National Portrait Gallery closes for three years this summer.

Will there be a BP Portrait Award 2021?
Will it continue to be sponsored by BP? Given that the BP Sponsorship is attracting more and more criticism - including by one of the Judges in 2019.

GOOD NEWS: Art Competitions still running in 2020

These art competitions are still running in 2020

RA Summer Exhibition 2015

The RA Summer Exhibition

The art competition most unlikely to ever give up!
website https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/exhibition/summer-exhibition-2020
My posts:

John Moores Painting Prize

This art competition is still running.
website: https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/jmpp/john-moores-painting-prize
See my recent blog post Call for Entries: £25,000 John Moores Painting Prize 2020 + NEW Prize

The Sunday Times Watercolour Competition

This art competition is still running.
The website https://www.sundaytimeswatercolour.org/ promises that the call for entries will be published soon.
to be honest it needs a bit of a revamp (see Sunday Times Watercolour Competition 2019 - Prizewinners & Exhibition). Was 2019 the turning point for this competition - which has been noticeably less impressive in recent times? We wait to find out.

Wildlife Artist of the Year 2020

not quite the same art competition as under the late David Shepherd - but it's still around
exhibition at the Mall Galleries 27th - 31st May 2020

Derwent Art Prize

Chrys Allen - the first winner of the Derwent Art Prize in 2013

The Derwent Art Prize is still current
This is my recent blog post Call for Entries - 5th Derwent Art Prize 2020

ING Discerning Eye

no news about 2020 yet
no reason to suppose it will not run as usual
website not updated since 2019 exhibition
still live on Parker Harris website
https://thediscerningeye.artopps.co.uk/

The Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize

no news about 2020 yet
no reason to suppose it will not run as usual
website not updated since 2019 exhibition
still live on Parker Harris website
https://tbwdrawingprize.artopps.co.uk/

Why art competitions are important

In summary: art competitions are really important for

newbie artists - because they make them think about standards and processes relevant to an art competition - which can also help them with developing and selling their art generally. Shipping artwork to a client is not very different to shipping to an art competition - except your client will keep the packaging!
emerging artists in terms of raising their profile and getting their work seen on a national stage and by art galleries and agents - often for the first time.
improving artists wanting to develop their careers - in terms of demonstrating a track record of being consistently chosen for different art competitions
established artists who need to remind people they exist and are still producing quality artwork - and occasionally test their metal! However there can be a downside. It's bad enough being turned down for an art competition when you're an aspiring artist. Think about what it must feel like if you have supposedly already made the grade!!

TOP TIPS for art competitions

My Making A Mark Page about Major Art Competitions has a round up of some tips previously posted on this blog.

TIPS for artists entering exhibitions

You may find these TIPS helpful

20 tips for entering art competitions - What do you need to know when thinking about entering an art competition? Here's 20 tips to help you.
Juried art competitions - does size matter? - For those concerned about what size to paint
Is there a guide for pricing art for competitions? in which I offer some practical advice for artists wanting to work out how to price their artwork when entering a competition.
Pricing prints for the Summer Exhibition - looking at the arithmetic on gross and net profit if a print is priced at an affordable level
Top tips for art competitions - a precis - I've written many blog posts about art competitions over the years. Here are links to some of them.
All the mistakes you can make when submitting work to an art exhibition - a checklist of nightmare scenarios
NOT selected by an art competition or open exhibition? - Have you had your artwork rejected by an art competition or an open exhibition? Did you wonder why? Did you vow never ever to enter another one - and then entered anyway after the Call for Entries was published?
WARNING: "Not previously exhibited" - about why it's important to read and observe ALL the rules
How to calculate the cost of entering a juried art exhibition - For those concerned about how the expenses can mount up
Pre-selected, selected, long listed, shortlisted, prizewinner - what's in a phrase? - A discussion of the terminology used to describe artists at different stages of an art competition
A Making A Mark Guide: Analysing the cost of entering a juried art exhibition - Download my FREE spreadsheet which acts as a checklist and helps you to cost out your entry
The Websites of Contemporary Painters in the UK - Get your website sorted BEFORE you enter a juried art competition or miss out on the traffic when the names of selected artists are announced!
VAT for non-UK artists and UK exhibition organisers - About the recent changes around VAT thresholds in the UK for artists living outside the UK.

and for those needing help with framing...

How to frame and hang your art - which includes a section on Framing for art competitions & open exhibitions

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Call for Entries - 5th Derwent Art Prize 2020

This is an overview of the Derwent Art Prize and how to enter this international art competition which

focuses on those who create artworks created in pencil or coloured pencils, pastel, graphite and/or charcoal
has £12.5k in prizes
PLUS two exhibitions of selected artworks in London and Paris.

Below are SUMMARY details of

the history of the Derwent Art Prize (and the brand name)
the exhibition details, prizes and selectors for the Derwent Art Prize 2020
how to enter - what you need to know and do to enter - the most important one of which is that entries must be received by 17th February 2020

In addition, all artists entering the Derwent Art Prize 2020 will be eligible to a 15% discount on all Derwent products(shipping not included).

This code will be sent to all applicants once the competition deadline has closed on 17 February 2020
It will be valid from 18 February to 31 March 2020. Please refer to website (www.derwentart.com) for products and our Terms & Conditions and for delivery information.

The History of the Derwent Art Prize

Derwent Art Prize at the Mall Galleries in 2018

The Derwent Art Prize was conceived in 2012.

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.

BELOW are my blog posts covering the Derwent Art Prize in its first four outings. You can see the sort of work that was submitted and got selected in both the posts about the selected artists and those reviewing the exhibition.

4th Derwent Art Prize 2018

Derwent Art Prize 2018: Prizewinners and Exhibition Lists the Derwent Art Prize 2018 prizewinners together with views of the exhibition on display at the Mall Galleries in London
Derwent Art Prize 2018 - Selected Artists

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

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

3rd Derwent Art Prize 2016

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

2nd 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

1st 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

About Derwent and the Cumberland Pencil Company

The Art Prize carries the "Derwent" brand name of the Cumberland Pencil Company who in turn are part of ACCO (formerly Rexel).

The Cumberland Pencil Company was created in 1916
The first Derwent colour pencil was introduced in 1938.
In 2008, the Cumberland Pencil Company left the old pencil factory in Keswick and moved to its new Pencil Factory on a site at Lillyhall, Workington.
The Derwent Pencil Museum maintains a presence in Keswick, where pencils first started being made in 1832 - after graphite was found in Borrowdale in the 1500s.

Derwent is very active in relation to other exhibitions besides this prize. It

sponsors The Pastel Society, working closely with its members at events, exhibitions and commissioning artwork.
work with the UK Coloured Pencil Society, Society of Botanical Artists and Society for All Artists (SAA).

Derwent Art Prize Exhibition and Prizes and Selectors

Artworks in the Derwent Art Prize Exhibition in 2018

The Exhibition

This year for the first time, selected works will also be displayed in France. Around 80 selected artworks will be on display at the following venues and dates

22 April to 4 May 2020 - the Gallery@OXO in central London (Address: Oxo Tower Wharf, Bargehouse Street, South Bank, London SE1 9PH)
12 – 17 May at 20 rue Saint Claude in Paris.