Jerwood Drawing Prize 2014 - Call for Entries

The longest running annual open exhibition for drawing in the UK is The Jerwood Drawing Prize - worth £6,000 to the winner.

The call for entries has been made for the prestigious Jerwood Drawing Prize 2014. Online registration opened last week and the deadline for online registration: 16 June 2014, 5pm.

The Jerwood Drawing Prize exhibition represents and celebrates the diversity, excellence, and range of current drawing practice in the UK.

Key facts

• The Jerwood Drawing Prize is the country’s leading award in drawing

Selected from original art works it has established a reputation for its commitment to championing excellence, and promoting and celebrating the breadth of contemporary drawing practice within the UK.

• This is the longest running annual open exhibition dedicated to drawing in the UK. (It still claims to be the largest - but I have news for Jerwood - there were more drawings exhibited in the Derwent Art Prize!)
• Entries can be submitted by established or emerging artists who are resident or domiciled within the UK. 
• It's expected over 3,000 entries will be submitted  
• Last year's exhibition included 76 drawings by 76 artists - 24 of whom were students
• Prizes will be awarded to the winning artists at a ceremony on Tuesday 16 September 2014. They comprise.
• a first prize of £8,000,
• a second prize of £5,000, and
• two student awards of £2,000 each.

Winner of the Jerwood Drawing Prize 2013
Apocalypse (My Boyfriend Doesn’t Care)
Ink on paper, 183 x 150cm
© Svetlana Fialova

Read on to find out more about the prize and how to enter the 2014 competition.

The Sunday Times Watercolour Competition 2014 - Call for Entries

The Call for Entries for 27th year of the prestigious Sunday Times Watercolour Competition was published today. Artists are invited to submit up to four works.

The Sunday Times Watercolour Competition provides an opportunity for artists across the UK to redefine, celebrate and reward excellence and originality in watercolour and water-based media.  

This post tells you about:

• who can enter
• what you can enter
• the time table
• the exhibition

The deadline for submissions 5pm, Monday 2 June 2014. Entry for the 2014 competition is ONLINE.

Sunday Times Watercolour 2014 Competition Prizes

This is one of the top art competitions in the UK with 

• First Prize - £10,000
• Second Prize - £6,000
• Smith & Williamson Cityscape Prize - £1,500
• Vintage Classics Prize for Cover Art - £500 + win a commission to create the cover art for a Vintage Classic

The Sunday Times Watercolour Competition 2013 Prizewinners

Read on to find out more about:

• how to enter the Sunday Times Watercolour Competition
• where you can see the Exhibition in London and around the UK .

Interest Lists: How to make sure Facebook does not filter the content you want to read

Yesterday I posted about recent changes to the Facebook Newsfeed - see This week's changes on Facebook - and what to do next.  (PS I added new content and updated this after I published it - I thought of a more few things - like the need to NOT like and hide posts from your newsfeed)

Today I want to expand on the idea of how to create and/or share Interest Lists as a way of ensuring you see the content of Facebook Pages or Accounts you want to read.

So this post covers

• links to my Interest Lists which are now being shared on my Facebook Page 
• two guides I wrote a while back about why Interest Lists are a good idea and how to create them
• links to Facebook Help re Interest Lists

The Art Materials Interest List on my Facebook Account
Note the Interests Lists in the left hand column - they starts just below Photos

My Interest Lists

I've now made them all the ones I'm listing below "public" so you should be able to access these if you are logged into Facebook.  I'll be sharing these on my Facebook Page also - I've already shared the Art Materials and Supplies one.

• Art Galleries and Museums
• Art Materials and Supplies - shared this afternoon
• Art Competitions
• Art Societies

Do let me know if you think I've missed out any good ones! :)

A discussion about Interest Lists today.

Facebook Lists

Below you will find links to the two posts I wrote back in 2012 when lists started to emerge as a way of better managing the Facebook algorithm which decides what you see in your newsfeed (ie it filters out about 80%!)

• A Guide to Facebook Interest Lists (Part 1) - Part 1 of my Guide to Facebook Interest Lists - looks at how Interest Lists might provide a better way of accessing news
• How to make an effective Facebook Interest List - Part 2 of my Guide to Facebook Interest Lists - looks at how to make a Facebook Interest Page and how to share it

Do let me know if you're finding anything has changed.

Facebook Basics

You can use Lists for Interests or Friends

• What are lists?
• How do I use lists to organize my friends?
• What are interest lists?
• What's the difference between a list and a group? Which one should I create?
• Lists for Friends - all the details
• Interest Lists - all the details

This week's changes on Facebook - and what to do next

You know that happy habit Facebook has of changing things without telling you?

They did it again on Thursday - and I think all the changes we're now seeing are linked to two things

• their new newswire service see https://www.facebook.com/FBNewswire AND
• changes to newsfeeds to get rid of spam and junk content

On the face of it, the first change is nothing for to us to get excited about - it's just Facebook trying to muscle in on the regular News newsfeeds that people enjoy following. 

The second change is of more consequence. First of all it has had a major effect on the Pages Newsfeed when in the Facebook Pages mode.

We now need to understand how our behaviour affects:

• what we see in future and 
• the extent to which what we do affects what is seen by us and by others.

Let me explain. (For those who prefer art and are missing "who painted this?" - try and puzzle out the painting - I'll fill in the name and artist tomorrow).

Woman in Black reading a newspaper (1912) by Rik Wouters
Oil on canvas
Royal Museum of Antwerp

Interviews with six RHS Botanical Art Gold Medal Winners (2014)

This year there were six botanical artists who won RHS Gold Medals at the Royal Horticultural Society's Botanical Art Show last week. This post has interviews with all six.

This is a VERY LONG post and is for those interested in the technical aspects of producing a gold medal winning display of botanical art.

So grab your favourite hot drink and a comfy chair and settle down for a jolly good read!

Additional interviews

This post follows on from my interviews in recent years with other RHS Gold medal winners.

• Interviews with RHS Botanical Art Gold Medal Winners 18 Apr 2013 - Interviews with eight botanical artists who won Gold Medals at the RHS Botanical Art Show in April 2013.
• 7 Gold Medal Winners at RHS Botanical Art 2012 17 Mar 2012 - On Friday afternoon I met four of the seven gold medal winners at the RHS Botanical Art Show which was held in the Lindley Hall in London on 16-17th March.
• RHS Botanical Art Show & Five Gold Medal Winners 21 Mar 2011 -  Yesterday I met five Gold Medal Winners.

Please also note that their TIPS for creating a Gold Medal display AND how best to present it are listed at the end of this post.

So - on to my interviews with the six artists who won Gold Medals at this year's show.

The ladies with an RHS Gold Medal

This years RHS Gold Medal Winners were as follows - and the interviews follow the order below

• Hye Woo Shin (Korea) - Heterotrophic Plants in Korea - also WINNER of the Best Exhibit
• Işık Güner (Turkey/Scotland) - Plants from the woods & forests of Chile - also WINNER of the Best Painting
• Lynda de Wet (South Africa) - Parasitic Plants in Situ with the Host Plant - this is her blog
• Louise Lane (UK) - Ophrys (Bee Orchids) of Menorca
• Nikki Marks (UK) - The Genus Arisaema
• Sharon Tingey (UK/Scotland) - Sunflowers (Helianthus)

Hye Woo Shin (Korea) - Heterotrophic Plants in Korea

Hye Woo Shin - with her Best Exhibit Award and RHS Gold Medal for Heterotrophic Plants of Korea (Parasitic Plants)

The One Show Summer Art Competition - another way exhibit at the Royal Academy of Arts

Details of the The One Show Summer Art Competition have been published. This year, if selected, your work could be hung in an exhibition in the Reynolds Room at the Royal Academy at the same time as the 246th Summer Exhibition i.e. between 16 June – 9 August 2014.

Over 700 people entered this competition last year.

12 shortlisted artists in each category (13-17 years old and over 18s) will have their work exhibited at the RA and six finalists in each category will be filmed for The One Show on BBC1.

Prizes

There are two prizes

• one for adults i.e. over 18 on 16th April 2014 and 
• one for teenagers aged between 13 and 17.

Selection criteria

This is the criteria for how entries will be judged.

Works will be judged on the following criteria:

• Originality
• Composition
• Control and use of the chosen medium
• Ability to follow the guidelines as set out in the Terms and Conditions

Please also note

Following standard industry practice, the BBC may undertake background checks of the shortlisted finalists. The parents or guardians of entrants may be asked questions regarding the entrants and may be asked to sign a declaration on their behalf. Information discovered or that may have been disclosed in this process will inform the decision as to the selection of the finalists.

Who can enter

Only amateur artists can enter this competition. Here's the definitive statement of who is an amateur artist - because the BBC says so!

The competition is not open to professional artists or artists who have already won prizes and awards for their work – only amateurs. To qualify as an amateur, individuals should not earn more than 50% of their annual income from their artworks. The BBC’s decision as to whether an entrant is amateur or professional is final.

You can enter if over 13 on 16th April 2014.

Terms and Conditions

These are:

• the terms and conditions for adults (ie over 18 year olds) (on 16th April 2014)
• the terms and conditions for 13-17 year olds

How to enter

Here's how to enter. Note entry is by post and is NOT digital and entries are NOT returned.

What to send with your entry form

Complete an entry form and send with image of the artwork by post to The One Show Art Competition 2014, BBC Scotland, Pacific Quay, Glasgow G51 1DA

• DO NOT SEND ORIGINALS. Send either a photo(s) or a scanned reproduction of your artwork
• Download the entry forms for 18+ year olds Word version (34 KB) or PDF version (186 KB)
• Download the entry forms for 13-17year olds Word version (36 KB) or PDF version (189 KB)

Type and Size of artwork

• Work should be on paper or or canvas.
• Works should be no bigger thanA1, 84cm x 59cm / 33 inches x 23 inches

Deadline for entries

The deadline for entries is 2nd May 2014 - so you need to get your act together if you want to enter!

Top 10 tips for being an artist

Suzanne du Toit, winner of the BP Portrait Award 2013, has written an article for the BBC on her top 10 tips for being an artist.

They're not just about being a portrait artist. Indeed a botanical artist friend of mine said she could identify with every one!

Suzanne du Toit with the BP Portrait Award 2013
(Left: Sandy Naire, Director of the National Portrait Gallery
Right: Joanna Trollope, Author,
guest presenter and one of this year's Judges)

So what are they?

Top 10 tips for being an artist

These are the headlines for her top 10 tips - but you need to read Top 10 Tips: Award-winning artist Susanne du Toit to find out her reasons for these tips. It's a jolly good and recommended read.

1. Surround yourself with like-minded people
2. Find the art form that you love the most
3. Be able to endure working alone
4. Accept your limitations
5. Know your subjects
6. Don't rush, take your time
7. Use photos to help you, but don't work from them alone
8. Be prepared for people not always liking your work
9. Paint for yourself and be honest
10. Remember what is important to you and pursue that

21st April 2014 - Who's made a mark?

This is the first of my "Who's made a mark" posts in a while.  It's a round-up of my posts on this blog and on Facebook PLUS it's interspersed with other news I've noticed as I get back to more normal life.

During my time writing the book I've had a couple of major milestones

The Making A Mark Facebook Page yesterday - with 2,001 likes

• Making A Mark achieves 2.5 million visits came in March
• and yesterday Making A Mark achieved more than 2,000 likes for the Making A Mark Facebook Page

Many thanks to all those regular readers, visitors and followers of Making A Mark. 
I love hearing from you if the blog has made a difference to your lives......

After the hiatus I'll start by just briefly mentioning what's coming up on my blog in the next week:

• a call for entries for an important new art competition
• interviews with the six botanical artists who became RHS Gold Medallists last week
• a return for "Who Painted This?"
• and a big thank you to all the artists who contributed images to my new book

 PLUS a video of the biggest exhibition to open in London recently!

Art Genre

Botanical Art

• We're into my favourite phase of the year with the RHS Botanical Art Show closely preceded or followed (as happens this year) by the Annual Exhibition of the Society of Botanical Artists. So far I've written three posts about the RHS Show:
• RHS Botanical Art Show 2014 - Medal winners - highlights what each artist selected for the exhibition was awarded. Basically the standard is now so high that everybody gets a medal
• More Top Tips for winning an RHS Gold Medal for Botanical Art - another in my series of posts identifying what's required to do well at the RHS show - based on tips from the Gold Medallists
• 15 Top Tips for presenting work at an RHS Botanical Art Exhibition - this year I've included observations about what makes for a better presentation of artwork in this show.
• Meanwhile Gaynor Dickeson wrote a fascinating account over several posts on her blog
  gaynorsflora about what it was like to prepare for the show and then be there. There are several posts starting on 6th April - as she gives an insiders' perspective on what's involved with exhibiting at this show. I recommend you start around about the beginning of April as she starts her count down to the exhibition and all the last minute things you need to think about and do. It's recommended reading for all those who aspire to do the same!

Drawing and Sketching

• I've been asked to speak at "Draw In" - a symposium about drawing in late August. Other speakers will include Paul Foxton, PJ Lynch, and Colleen Barry.
• I've been asking artists their top tip for drawing - and this is John Smolko's Top Tip for Drawing
• In mid March I asked whether 2014 - the year of very many books about Urban Sketching? We have the third Urban Sketchers London exhibition at Timberyard Old Street – 61-67 Old Street, London EC1V 9HW

Portraiture

• Simon Weston portrait unveiled at National Portrait Gallery - It was great meeting both Simon Weston and Nikki Pihiliips who painted his portrait at the NPG.  It was also a privilege to see somebody see their own portrait for the first time. His mum said "It's him to a t." His family are all very pleased with it. Simon was voted for by the British public as being the person they most wanted to see in the NPG.

The framer, Simon Weston, Nikki Phillips (the artist) and Fiona Bruce

Watercolour Painting

• This is a Video: Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours - Annual Exhibition. 

Art Books

• One of the best people I know in terms of drawing and drawing books is Sarah Simblet. This is Sarah Simblet and The New Sylva - a video about a new book she's been working on - it includes 200 drawings of trees in the UK

Art Business and Marketing

Grayson Perry on television in 2014

Grayson Perry CBE RA - artist and contemporary social anthropologist is set to wow us with more of his fresh insights into contemporary society and the place of artmaking within it with two new television programmes due to be aired later this year. They are:

• a brand new three part series about portraiture and identity called Who Are You? and 
• a one off programme Grayson's Great Design

This follows his stunning success and increasing popularity associated with recent television and radio programmes and art exhibitions including:

• his first Channel 4 series All In the Best Possible Taste (Channel 4, 2012) which won a BAFTA for his exploration taste and class
• The Vanity of Small Differences - his series of tapestries produced as a result of the Channel 4 series. Perry and his gallery gifted this major work to the Arts Council Collection and the British Council.  It is currently touring the UK supported by Channl 4. the Art Fund and others. Remaining dates are:
• Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (14 February – 11 May 2014)
• Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool (23 May – 10 August 2014)
• Leeds City Art Gallery (late August – October 2014).
• Also available as an iPhone/iPad app which I highly recommend for those unable to get to see the tapestries. 
• Perry's 2013 Reith Lectures - still available as a podcast (links to MP3 recordings below) - and well worth downloading for posterity - even thought the BBC has determined they will be available indefinitely!  They related to:
• Democracy Has Bad Taste - the process of assessing quality in contemporary art. Perry argues that there is no empirical way to judge quality in art. (see my blog post review in link at end)
• Beating the Bounds - Can anything be considered as art?
• Nice Rebellion, Welcome In! - Can art still shock us or have we seen it all before?
• I Found Myself In The Art World - Perry discusses his life in the art world and assesses the role of the artist in society.

From The Vanity of Small Differences - a portrait of taste in writing
the names of cultural and style icons form what appear to be
textile ribbing but are in fact words (eg Picasso, Proust, Purcell, Matisse, Wagner)
Image credit: Expulsion from Number 8 Eden Close (detail), 2012
by Grayson Perry © the artist

Who are you? - the new Grayson Perry Series

Three hour long films film Grayson Perry meeting people and then producing their portraits.

The people have been chosen because they are facing "a moment in their lives when they need to define who they are". The challenge for Grayson Perry is to distil his encounter with them and the impressions he gained into a portrait.

The portraits range from miniatures, to large tapestries, statues and ceramic pots - which was the medium he first became known for.  I'm sure they will all include a few well chosen words from Mr Perry! (see the above image for an example of how he works).

All of the works will then be shown in an exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery - alongside portraits in the permanent collection. This is being timed to accompany the transmission and since Channel 4 says later this year and the NPG has its exhibitions up to October already listed - I'm going to take a guess and say it'll be an exhibition opening in November which will turn into a mini-blockbuster over the Christmas holiday period!

A complete range of contemporary human life - not previously covered in the "Vanities" - are his sitters for a portrait. They include:

Shortlist announced for BP Portrait Award 2014

Two elderly women and a homeless man painted by an international shortlist of three male artists are in competition for the £30,000 BP Portrait Award 2014.

These are:

• Thomas Ganter (Germany) for Man with a Plaid Blanket
• David Kassan (USA) for Letter to my Mom and
• Richard Twose (UK) for Jean Woods.

The second and third prizes in the 35th year of this internationally prestigious art competition are worth £10,000 and £8,000.  

The winner of the BP Young Artist Award of £7,000 will also be announced at the Awards Evening on the evening of Tuesday 24 June 2014 (the date is in my diary!)  I really like the idea that nobody has any idea who this will be until the night itself.  Should make for a big turnout by those aged 18 to 30! 

Exhibition

Man with a Plaid Blanket

by Thomas Ganter, 2013

160 x 60 cm oil on canvas

© Thomas Ganter

The BP Portrait Exhibition will be held in London, Sunderland and Edinburgh:

• the National Portrait Gallery in London (26 June – 21 September 2014). Admission is free - and this is always a very popular exhibition with lots of visitors. 
• Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens (4 October, 2014 – 16 November, 2014) and 
• The Scottish National Portrait Gallery (28 November – 12 April, 2015.)

Artists shortlisted for the BP Portrait Award 2014

I've got the high resolution images of these portraits and I have to say I'm extremely impressed by all three and can make a case for each of them winning.

My gut says Ganter will win. There's something very penetrating and yet enduring about that portrait and themes it raises. Plus I've never ever seen another painting like it in the BP and originality counts for a lot.

Thomas Ganter

Age: 40
Nationality: German
Occupation: Artist and illustrator
Current home: Frankfurt/Main, Germany
Art education: ?
Previous appearances in this award: ?
Website: none
Subject: Karel, a homeless man

‘After being in a museum, I saw a homeless man and was stunned by a similarity: the clothes, the pose, and other details resembled what I just saw in various paintings. However, this time I was looking at a homeless person wrapped in a blanket and not at the painting of a saint or noble in their elaborate garment. By portraying a homeless man in a manner reserved for nobles or saints, I tried to emphasise that everyone deserves respect and care. Human dignity shouldn’t be relative or dependent on socio-economic status’. 

His shortlisted portrait invites the viewer to contemplate the coexistence of wealth and poverty.

Karel, who tries to earn some money by cleaning car windscreens in the artist’s neighbourhood, attended five sittings for the portrait. After these, in which the head and the hands were painted, Ganter used a life-sized doll, and painted the clothes and the blanket before finally adding the artificial flower at the bottom right.

Letter to my Mom

by David Jon Kassan, 2013
124.5 x 81 cm oil on aluminium panel
© David Jon Kassan

David Jon Kassan

Age: 37
Nationality: American - born in Little Rock, Arkansas
Occupation: Artist
Current home: Brooklyn, New York
Art education: ? however he has two lists of recommended books and recommended materials

Previous appearances in this award: ?

Website: http://www.davidkassan.com
Blog: http://blog.davidkassan.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kassan
Interview with the artist on Youtube
Subject: Letter to my Mom is a portrait of his mother.

You can see much larger images of this portrait on his website.

His portrait is the product of a request to his mother and father to sit for him in his studio in New York City while his parents made a brief stop on their way to Europe.

‘My work is very personal and heartfelt. It’s my visual diary, so my family and loved ones make up a large part of what and why I paint. My parents have always been inspirational to paint. This portrait is a letter to my mom, who hates it when I paint her. But I tell her in the painting that by painting her, it is my way of spending time with her, contemplating our relationship and time together, my earliest memories’. The Hebrew text painted onto the portrait above the sitter reads: ‘Dear Mom,/ This painting is my way to spend more time with you./ My way to meditate on our life together./ And all of the earliest memories I have/All of my earliest memories from you’.

Mothers are perennial and enduring sitters for BP portrait artists! Kassan's mother had sat for him a few years before and was reluctant to sit for him again. In order to persuade her, he had to bribe her by offering her a painting of his son Lucas.  I think all mothers should hold out for a bribe like that!

Personally I think the letter idea has a strong appeal.

The painting also reminds me a lot of Aleah Chapin's portrait from two years ago which in a way I'm surprised about.  The notion is that "me too" paintings should be avoided at all costs.  However this is a very fine painting judging by the high resolution image I've seen.  Maybe the similarity is to do with a style of painting in New York?

My reservation about this painting is I just don't quite see a painting which doesn't include the eyes actually winning this award.

Jean Woods
by Richard Twose, 2014
90 x 60 cm oil on board
© Richard Twose

Richard Twose

Age: 51
Nationality: British
Occupation: Teacher and artist - he currently teaches Painting and Drawing and Art History at a sixth form college in Bristol
Current home: Bath
Art education: ?
Previous appearances in this award: ?
Website: http://www.richardtwose.co.uk
Subject: Jean Woods, a 76 grandmother living in Larkhall, Bath

Richard Twose first saw the sitter of his portrait, Jean Woods, when she was working in a shop in Bath. His daughter told him that she was the grandmother of a friend after he saw her again in Channel Four's documentary Fabulous Fashionistas which was a.....

Cutting Edge documentary meets six women with an average age of 80, who are determined to look fabulous, have fun and redefine old age!

After calling her and asking her to sit for him, he was struck by her professionalism as a sitter –derived from her recent experience as a fashion model and from a quality of stillness she seems to possess naturally.

He was impressed not only by her striking looks and contemporary, edgy style, but also by the depth of character in her face.

‘Sometimes as Jean was talking, especially about her much-missed late husband, she reminded me of Rembrandt's Portrait of Margaretha de Geer. Jean has a similar intensity and honesty in her gaze. I wanted to capture that sense of someone who has learnt to be almost fearless, looking forward to life still but with a great richness of experience behind her’.

It's a fine portrait and well painted. However I find Jean Woods more striking in the photographs of her - click the links above to see what I mean.

Judging Panel

This year’s judging panel are:

• Sandy Nairne, Director, National Portrait Gallery (Chair)
• Sarah Howgate, Contemporary Curator, National Portrait Gallery
• Dr Alexander Sturgis, Director of the Holburne Museum, Bath
• Joanna Trollope, Author
• Des Violaris, Director, UK Arts and Culture, BP
• Jonathan Yeo, Artist

Observations about the shortlisted works

Note that:

• not one of the portraits is a portrait of just a head.  As I've pointed out in previous posts (see below), the panel want to know whether you can do more than paint a head - because that's what commissions for the NPG usually involve.
• all portray the individual above the waist
• all make a feature of the hands - demonstrating abilities in that very important area
• colour palettes are very varied but impressive - these are people who know how to use colour
• backgrounds are not flat - even if one is flattish

Relative sizes

I did a little exercise to check the relative sizes. This was prompted by being stunned when visiting the exhibition by the very different sizes of some of the artwork of shortlisted artists in previous years.  I cranked up Excel and starting counting cells and then overlayed the artwork - and then thought again and lined them up as if on a wall.

Relative size of the three portraits

Left to right: Ganter, Kassan and Twoze

BP Portrait Award - previous years

I've been covering the BP Portrait Award for some years and have an extensive archive of posts relating to previous competitions which I know are much studied by those contemplating an entry!

BP Portrait Award - Shortlisted artists on Making A Mark:

• BP Portrait Award 2013 - The Shortlist 23 April 2013
• BP Portrait Award 2013: Call for Entries 04 Dec 2012
• BP Portrait Award 2012 - The Shortlist 05 Apr 2012
• BP Portrait Award 2011 Shortlist 18 Apr 2011
• BP Portrait Award 2010 - Shortlist announced 28 Apr 2010
• BP Portrait Award 2009 - the shortlist 27 May 2009
• BP Portrait Award shortlist announced - a womanwill win! 25 Apr 2008

BP Portrait award 2014

• BP Portrait Award 2014 - Call for Entries 03 Dec 2013

BP Portrait Award 2013

• BP Portrait Award 2013: Call for Entries The competition is open to all artists living anywhere in the world who are aged 18 and over on 1st January 2013.
• BP Portrait Award 2013 - Selected Artists and Statistics - list of selected portraits / exhibiting artists for the 2012 Exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery.
• BP Portrait Award 2013 - The Shortlist - identifies those shortlisted. See if you can guess which work won before reading my review post.
• Susanne de Toit wins £30,000 BP Portrait Award 2013 - BP Portrait Award 2012 Prizewinners
• BP Portrait Exhibition 2013 - Video & Review - A Makingamark Video of a walk around the BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2013 at the National Portrait Gallery
• Sophie Ploeg wins BP Travel Award 2013 - information for those interested in the Travel Award
• Carl Randall's Japan - the best BP Travel Award Exhibition ever!

BP Portrait Award 2012

• Call for Entries: BP Portrait Award 2012 11 Dec 2011
• BP Portrait Award 2012 - 55 Selected Artists 30 May 2012
• Aleah Chapin wins £25,000 BP Portrait Award 2012 19 Jun 2012
• BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2012 (Part 1) 20 Jun 2012
• BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2012 (Part 2) 21 Jun 2012
• Video of BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2012 23 Jun 2012

BP Portrait Award 2011

• BP Portrait Award 2011 Shortlist - identifies shortlisted entries and artists. See if you can guess which work won before reading my review post.
• BP Portrait Award 2011: links to Selected Artists - artists selected for the exhibition in 2011
• Review: BP Portrait Award Exhibition 2011- my review of the exhibition (later than usual)
• BP Travel Awards: 2010 (Paul Beel) and 2011 (Jo Fraser) - information for those interested in the Travel Award
• BP Portrait Award 2011: People's Favourite & Statistics - this is the post in which I analysed last year's entry statistics

BP Portrait Award 2010

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

BP Portrait Award 2009

• BP Portrait Tour & Portrait of the Nation (24 Sep 2009)
• Sue Rubira makes her mark on BP Portrait (18 Jun 2009)
• Exhibition review: BP Portrait Award (18 Jun 2009)
• Peter Monkman wins first prize in BP Portrait Award 2009 (17 Jun 2009)
• BP Portrait Award 2009 - the shortlist (27 May 2009)
• BP Portrait Award - who enters and who gets selected (28 May 2009)
• BP Portrait Award 2009 - Call for Entries (15 Dec 2008)

BP Portrait Award 2008

• Craig Wylie wins BP Portrait Award 2008
• BP Portrait Prize 2008 - exhibition opens

BP Portrait Award 2007

• Making a Mark: Paul Emsley wins BP Portrait Award (22 Jun 2007)
• View the BP Portrait Award 2007 and BP Travel Award 2006 exhibitions(15 June 2007)

Sarah Simblet and The New Sylva - a video

Back in 2008 I did a drawing class with Sarah Simblet about Drawing Trees at the National Gallery. She talked about a major project she had embarked upon to draw trees.

Little did I realise at the time this would lead her to illustrating a new and revised version of a very old book about trees. The New Sylva - published this month - is an updated book about trees which takes as its starting point John Evelyn's Sylva (A Discourse of Forest Trees, and the Propagation of Timber in his Majesty's Dominions) published in 1664 - which was the world's first book about Forestry.

That wasn't illustrated - and this one is - with 200 new pen and ink drawings of more than 100 tree species.

Images from the book can be viewed on Facebook

The original book was for landed estates which grew trees. The new book is for everyone.

You can:

• see a Digital sampler of The New Sylva on their blog
• review images from the book released by the publisher in a Facebook photo set
• review a video (below) about how the book was made and how Sarah tackled drawing the different trees

The events associated with the publication of The New Sylva are all located as one might expect at arboreta and botanical gardens

More Top Tips for winning an RHS Gold Medal for Botanical Art

Last year I wrote Ten Top Tips for winning an RHS Gold Medal for Botanical Art - which proved very popular with botanical artists around the world.  So this year I'm back with more Top Tips from this year's "crop" of Gold Medal Winners

Gold Medal winning Exhibit of Parasitic Plants in Situ with the Host Plant by Lynda de Wet
The painting second from left with the red spot was bought for the collection kept at the RHS Lindley Library 

Last year the tips highlighted were as follows

1. Only submit top notch work
2. Find a Helpful Grower
3. Never ever forget that the RHS is a Horticultural Society
4. Get the Botany right - know what to show and highlight
5. Practice to achieve top quality
6. Size your work to fit the Panels
7. Have a good team behind you
8. Take care with your presentation
9. Start very early!
10. You need many more business cards than you think possible!

This year we have some different ones. The quotations you will find in each section come from either the Guidance or the Regulations relating to the Royal Horticultural Society Botanical Art Show held every year in the Lindley Hall.

1. Be happy - do what you love

Işık Güner with her painting of Gunnera which won

Best Painting in RHS Botanical Art Show 2014

This one came from the winner of both a Gold Medal and Best Painting in the show Işık Güner.

She thinks artists can work really long hours on a project when they truly enjoy what they do. Having the right subject can make for a really relaxed and meditative time and really make you happy!

I have to say I'm very much in agreement with this. There has to be an emotional connection between subject, media and artist for an artist to achieve their best work. Plus when tackling a long complex project it's always best if you love your subject!

TIP #1: Truly enjoy what you do

2. Do not rush!

This one is the result of various comments from different people. Some of the exhibits had a long gestation period while artists collected all the material they needed BEFORE they settled down to paint.  They emphasised the real importance and positive impact of very thorough preparation.

15 Top Tips for presenting work at an RHS Botanical Art Exhibition

There are two important aspects of artwork in the RHS Botanical Art Exhibition - the artwork and its presentation. The latter is very important - as discussed below.

Poor presentation will certainly lose you marks and downgrade the level of medal that might be achieved by the paintings exhibited.

So here are 15 top tips culled from the Gold Medal winning exhibitors this year (and in previous years).

[Note: I've spent the last two days at the RHS Botanical Art Show in the Lindley Hall in Westminster. This is the first of my blog posts about this show.  I've got at least two more planned this coming week relating to More Top Tips for winning an RHS Gold Medal and interviews with all six RHS Gold Medallists.]

Part of the RHS Botanical Art Show 2014

1. Presentation matters

Presentation really matters - a lot! These are the criteria used by the RHS when assessing an exhibit. They include (and I've highlighted in bold) points which are particularly relevant to presentation

RHS Botanical Art Show 2014 - Medal winners

Below you can find a list of the awards made this morning at the RHS Botanical Art Show 2014 at the RHS Horticultural Halls in Westminster.  The exhibition continues tomorrow.

Best Botanical Painting - by Işık Güner

RHS Best Botanical Painting - Işık Güner 

RHS Best Exhibit of Botanical Art - Hye Woo Shin

RHS Gold Medal - Botanical Art

• Hye Woo Shin (Korea) - Heterotrophic Plants in Korea
• Işık Güner (Turkey/Scotland) - Plants from the woods & forests of Chile
• Lynda de Wet (South Africa) - Parasitic Plants in Situ with the Host Plant - this is her blog
• Louise Lane (UK) - Ophrys (Bee Orchids) of Menorca
• Nikki Marks (UK) - The Genus Arisaema
• Sharon Tingey (UK/Scotland) - Sunflowers (Helianthus)

RHS Silver-Gilt Medal (Flora)

• Nilavan Adams (Australia) - Veggie Might
• Sansanee Deekrajang (Thailand) - Plants and shadow
• Jane Fisher (USA) - Field corn
• Verene Kutter (Switzerland) The Genus Anemone in Flora Europeae
• Angela Petrini (Italy) - Exotic flowering trees of Italy
• Yoshiko Kamei (Japan) - Iris

• Gaynor Dickeson (UK) - Small is beautiful; Crab apples explored
• Valerie Dugan (UK) - Wild Orchids of Britain
• Caroline Frances-King (UK) - Arboreal Elements
• Sally Pond (UK) - 'Of autumn mists and mellow fruitfulness'
• Penny Price (UK) - The life history of Castanospermum australe 'Black bean tree' or Moreton Bay Chestnut
• Fran Thomas (UK/Scotland) - Native Scottish marginal pond plants (Rumex aquaticus, Menyanthes trifoliata, Iris pseudacorus, Caltha palustris, Lythrum salicaria & Petasites hybridus)

RHS Silver Medal (Flora)

• Beverly Duncan (USA) - Winter Branches - Natives of the Northeastern U.S.A.
• Tiziana Fontana (Italy) - Sardinian Grapes
• Anna Lu (Singapore) - Orchids

• Barbara Clemence (UK) - Plants that changed the world
• Sumiko Davies (UK) - Wild Orchids
• Michael Lakin (UK) - Life Cycle of Newton Wonder Apples
• David Pearson (UK) - Tulips
• Dianne Sutherland (UK) - Fritillaria species

RHS Bronze (Flora)

• Olivia Chambers - Roots, Shoots, Stems and Flowers

I'll be doing more posts about the show - including interviews with the RHS Gold Medal Winners and top tips for producing botanical art.

If you'd like to be alerted when these are posted you can subscribe to this blog (see side column).

More about Botanical Art

Işık Güner and Fran Thomas talk to Julia Trickey about watercolour paints
- Julia is using Daniel Smith for the demonstration

• Pop Up Studio at the RHS Botanical Art Exhibition - six artists demonstrate how they make art from botanical subject matter - including multiple Gold Medal winning artists Ann Swan and Julia Trickey

Ann Swan's coloured pencils

• Ten Top Tips for winning an RHS Gold Medal for Botanical Art 14 Apr 2013 - Have you ever wondered whether your artwork is good enough to submit to the RHS Botanical Art Exhibition; Have you got the stage where you've started to wonder about the logistics of what's involved in submitting an entry?
• Interviews with RHS Botanical Art Gold Medal Winners 18 Apr 2013 - Interviews with eight botanical artists who won Gold Medals at the RHS Botanical Art Show in April 2013.
• RHS Botanical Art Show 2013 - Selected artists 09 Mar 2013 - List of 30 botanical artists from 10 countries selected for The RHS Botanical Art Show 2013 in London in April.
• 7 Gold Medal Winners at RHS Botanical Art 2012 17 Mar 2012
• RHS Botanical Art Show & Five Gold Medal Winners 21 Mar 2011
• How to enter the RHS Botanical Art Show 22 Mar 2011
• RHS Gold Medal Botanical Art 23 Feb 2007

You can find more resources about Botanical Art in my resources for artists websites:

• Botanical Art - Resources for Artists This site shares information about botanical art - societies, collections, books and other resources which support the development of botanical art. It also links to leading botanical artists in the past and present..
• The Best Botanical Art Instruction Books Learn about the best botanical art instruction books.
• The Best Books about Botanical Artists & Illustrators
• Botany for Botanical Artists
• A History of Botanical Art 
• Makingamark's Botanical Art Compendium This is a compendium of all the sites about botanical artists and botanical art as resources for both artists and botanical art lovers.

Video: Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours - Annual Exhibition

This is a video panning around the walls of the 202nd Annual Exhibition of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours

view of the West Gallery at the RI Annual Exhibition 2014

The purpose of this video isn't to give you an in-depth view of all the paintings so much as to give you:

• an idea of the overall size of the exhibition
• a notion of how big the paintings are that get selected via the open entry
• a view of the paintings that were selected this year

You can of course get a much better view of the paintings by paying a visit to the Mall Galleries - the exhibition continues until Saturday 19th April 2014. (Note: It's closed on Sunday because the Mall is closed to the public because of the London Marathon)



If you're inspired to contribute an entry for next year's exhibition go to How to exhibit on the RI website

My apologies for the quality of some of the film - I was walking sideways and trying to dodge people setting up for the evening event - which accounts for some of the mini iPad angles!  However I did at least manage to switch on HD this time!

Pop Up Studio at the RHS Botanical Art Exhibition

The RHS London Orchid and Botanical Art Show is open to the public on Friday and Saturday this week at the RHS Horticultural Halls (Lawrence & Lindley Hall) in Westminster, London SW1P 2PE. The Botanical Art Show is in the Lindley Hall.

This year there are going to be nearly 30 botanical artists exhibiting and hoping to win a much coveted Royal Horticultural Society Gold Medal.   This show always has a strong international flavour and 2014 is no exception with artists flying in from Australia, Thailand, South Korea and the USA.

For the first time this year, the RHS has decided to have a Pop-Up Studio in the Lindley Hall where you can meet practising botanical artists - some of whom have won a Gold Medal or two!

What follows is a summary of the document who explains who's painting!

Julia Trickey - website http://www.juliatrickey.co.uk

• winner of four RHS Gold Medals
• botanical artist - working in watercolour She is particularly drawn to specimens that are less than perfect, especially autumn leaves, seed heads and fading flowers.
• experienced tutor  
• her work is held in the RHS Lindley Library and the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, USA. 
• In 2014 Julia’s illustrations can be seen on Royal Mail Post & Go British Flora stamps.

Julia Trickey with her exhibition of Nature in Waiting which won an RHS Gold Medal in 2013

Jessica Shepherd - website http://inkyleaves.com | blog Inky Leaves

• a botanical illustrator who trained as a botanical taxonomist at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
• currently works in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew.
• uses her scientific training when illustrating plants for publications and exhibitions. 
• currently involved in a personal diary project "illustrating every single plant I have used over a twelve month period."
• she enjoys challenging current perceptions of botanical art and how it can be used in the 21st Century. 
• a member of the Chelsea Physic Garden Florilegium Society
• she has two paintings in the Shirley Sherwood Collection of Botanical Art.

Emma Hardicker website http://www.emmahardicker.com

• a printmaker whose work has featured in the V&A and London Design Festival. 
• produces stylised floral designs as limited edition prints and fabrics. 
• She sketches her designs in the garden, then uses traditional silk-screen printing methods with a lot of experimenting and colour mixing to produce eye-catching designs.

Hannah McVicar - website http://www.hannahmcvicar.co.uk

• an illustrator and printmaker (screenprinting). 
• produces floral illustrations for books, magazines and packaging. 
• Her illustrations were recently compared to William Morris in a review in the New York Times.
• works on commission - clients include The Times newspaper, Gardens Illustrated magazine and Ebury Publishing. A Graduated from Falmouth College of Art, in 2004.
• exhibits colourful and vibrant collections of floral screenprints internationally and throughout  the UK.

Liv Healey - website http://www.livhealey.com

• initially worked with textiles, mixed media and layering digital designs. 
• has recently worked on a set of prints and paintings inspired by plants and nature. The works are a combination of watercolours, inks and acrylics - with strong ink outlines and vibrant colour splashes 

Ann Swan - website http://www.annswan.co.uk | Facebook

• winner of four RHS Gold Medals
• an internationally acclaimed botanical artist well known for her fine detail, vibrant colours and strong contemporary style.
• an accomplished teacher, always evolving and incorporating new techniques into her work. She teaches around the world and from her Wiltshire studio, and runs holiday workshops in Europe.
• Author of ‘Botanical Painting with Coloured Pencils’,
• Exhibitions include The Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in 1994 and the Hunt Institute’s 8th International Exhibition in Pittsburgh USA. 
• Ann recently retired as a judge on the RHS Picture Panel 
• her work is represented in the prestigious Shirley Sherwood Collection and the RHS Lindley Library. 

Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2014 - Call for Entries

Entries for the Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2014 close on 1st May.

Last year some 1,800 artists entered the competition and 84 artists were chosen to participate in the regional heats. Below you can find about the competition and how to enter.

Before reading on you do need to think about the implications of this being a competition with a time limit of four hours for the production of a portrait. This favours some media over others and the fast worker over those who are slower. It therefore cannot be about finding the best portrait artist so much as the one who produces the best work within defined time limits.

About the competition

Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2014 will aim to discover and nurture artists of all capabilities who want to showcase their skills, whether amateur, professional or hobbyist.

The competition invites artists shortlisted from the entries to one of six regional heats over summer 2014.

The heats will take place in:

• London on Tuesday 27th and Wednesday 28th May
• Dublin on Sunday 15th June
• Edinburgh on Tuesday 8th and Wednesday 9th July
• Cardiff on Sunday 13th July

One change this year is that this year there are six groups of 12 artists rather than four groups of 21 and so the artists will get more of a chance to get to know each other.

The winners from the heats will then take part in more extraordinary portrait challenges with

• the semi-final to be held in London and 
• the grand final taking place at the National Portrait Gallery. 

The overall winner will be chosen by the series’ judges together with Sandy Nairne, Director of the National Portrait Gallery.

The competition is to be filmed over the summer. The plan is then to broadcast the programmes about the heats and the final on Sky Arts in October (8 x 60 minute series, 1 x 90 minute final, starts October on Sky Arts 1 HD)

What the artist needs to do....