We can't get enough of Sky Portrait Artist of the Year. It's the most relaxing TV show ever known to man (it's official) and we're looking forward to more glorious portraiture and creativity in 2024.
Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year season 11 is back on our screens on Wednesday 9th October 2024 with much-loved host Stephen Mangan.
Who won Sky Portrait Artist of the Year in 2023?
Portrait Artist of the Year 2023 culminated with a show-stopping paint-off between the final three artists who made it to the final, with talented artist Wendy Barratt winning the £10,000 prize and the opportunity to paint a portrait of Dr Dame Jane Morris Goodall DBE for the National Portrait Gallery.
What to expect from season 11 of Sky Portrait Artist of the Year
Get ready to immerse yourself in the world of gouache, oil painting, etching, and sketching, as we recap the weekly highlights. A fresh collection of the UK and Ireland's artists will battle it out in the gentlest way possible to win the crown of Portrait Artist of the Year 2024.
There will be a whole host of celebrity sitters this year including, Hannah Waddingham, Joely Richardson, Andy Serkis and Lorraine Ashbourne. This year’s winner will receive a £10,000 commission to create a portrait of renowned broadcaster Lorraine Kelly, which will be exhibited at the National Galleries Scotland.
As the brush strokes and pencil marks come together each week, we'll see the artists' portraits develop their skills throughout the hour's television. You’ll find yourself fighting the urge to run off and sign up instantly for your local college painting course!
Click on the links below to jump to a section:
- When is Sky Portrait Artist of the Year on TV?
- Where can I watch Sky Portrait Artist of the Year?
- Where is Sky Portrait Artist of the Year filmed?
- Sky Portrait Artist of the Year Christmas specials
- What to expect from the latest series
- Portrait Artist of the Year sitters
- Portrait Artist of the Year episode recaps
Images © Sky UK Limited
Everything you need to know about Portrait Artist of the Year 2024
When is Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year on TV?
Portrait Artist of the Year 2024 is back on our screens on Wednesday 9th October with much-loved host Stephen Mangan.
You can watch past series on Sky Arts and the streaming service NOW. You can watch Sky Arts for free on Freeview channel 11 and Freesat channel 147.
Where can I watch Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year?
You can catch up on the past ten seasons of the show over on Sky Arts. The show was originally Artist of the Year and has branched out with a spin-off series called Landscape Artist of the Year.
Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year is shown on Sky TV on channel Sky Arts, Freeview channel 11. This channel was previously known as Artsworld and Sky Arts 1. You can also watch Portrait Artist of the Year on the streaming platform NOW.
Where is Sky Portrait Artist of the Year filmed?
The show is filmed at Battersea Arts Centre, and each series the finals are filmed at the National Portrait Gallery.
Sky Portrait Artist of the Year Christmas specials
In 2022, Sky Portrait Artist of the Year returned for a celebrity Christmas special, with contestants such as John and Edward Grimes (aka Jedward) and comedian Ronni Ancona.
The sitters for the Christmas special were: Slade's Noddy Holder, interior designer Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen and singer Mica Paris.
Although there was no Christmas special for 2023, it seems likely that it'll return to our screens for another festive painting session!
Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2023: Look back at series 10
Stephen Mangan and Joan Bakewell continued their quest to find Britain and Ireland's best portrait artists. They were joined by returning judges: artist Tai Shan Schierenberg, independent curator Kathleen Soriano and art historian Kate Bryan.
The show covered lots of different techniques, mediums and subjects every week, with each contestant taking a different approach to the challenges.
"It never fails to fascinate me how one subject (or celebrity sitter in this case) can be interpreted in so many different ways, yet this series of Portrait Artist of Year doesn’t disappoint as our brilliant artists once again produce some incredible portraits. I’m just glad I’m not one of the judges!"
Joan Bakewell
Sky Portrait Artist of the Year 2023 included several rounds of painting competitions, where artists are challenged to paint portraits of famous sitters.
The artists were given four hours to create a portrait that captures the essence of their celebrity subject. Each week one winning artist (chosen by the judges) went through the semi finals, in a bid to get through to the final, which was filmed at the National Portrait Gallery.
In 2023 the artists were competing for the prize of a £10,000 commission to paint the renowned English primatologist Dr Dame Jane Morris Goodall DBE. Their work will then be exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery.
In a change to the usual format, the series kicked off with a special episode called Portrait Artist of the Decade, which brought together past winners of the show to compete against one another. It also looked at where their careers have taken them since winning the show.
"Having the opportunity to watch such skilled artists at work as they paint our wonderful (and incredibly patient!) celebrity sitters is always a pleasure and this series is no different... we’ve got such a fantastic mix of familiar faces all taking the hot seat in front of the easel, with each resulting portrait so varied and unique. Viewers are in for a treat!"
Stephen Mangan
Meet The Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2023 sitters
Caution: this section includes spoilers
With a mega prize and one well worth competing for, we're always blown away by the talent, skill and flair that the contestants show on screen. Those self portraits! The skill and detail and flair for colour and composition!
Season 10 featured celebrity sitters from the worlds of stage, screen, literature and the arts including screenwriter Richard Curtis, food critic Jay Rayner, presenter Alan Titchmarsh.
The artists competed to impress expert judges Tai Shan Schierenberg, Kathleen Soriano and Kate Bryan in seven heats. Each heat winner went on to paint presenter and former Spice Girl, Emma Bunton in the semi-final.
The three finalists will battled it out to take home the title, painting Portrait Artist of the Year's own Dame Joan Bakewell.
Sky Portrait Artist of the Year 2023 sitters
Here is the full list of famous faces who sat for the artists during series 10:
- Dame Judi Dench (Actor)
- Sir Lenny Henry (Actor and comedian)
- Emma Freud (Broadcaster)
- Richard Curtis (Screenwriter)
- Fleur East (Singer)
- Ainsley Harriott (Chef/television personality)
- Rory Stewart (President of “Give Directly” and author)
- Rob Delaney (Comedian)
- Jay Rayner (Critic)
- Nihal Arthanayake (Presenter)
- Susanna Reid (Presenter)
- Phillipa Perry (Author)
- Alan Titchmarsh (Presenter)
- Sue Barker (Sports personality/presenter)
- Josh Widdecombe (Comedian)
- Nicky Spence (Opera Singer)
- Shirley Ballas (Dancer)
- Vanessa Kingori (Conde Nast Chief Business Officer)
- Mishal Hussain (Presenter)
- Nigel Havers (Actor)
- Lenny Rush (Actor)
- Joe Sugg (writer and YouTube personality)
- Daryl McCormack (Actor)
- Dame Joan Bakewell (Broadcaster)
Find your next craft TV show
If you love Portrait Artist of the Year, you'll love the Great Pottery Throw Down! Watch talented potters make incredible ceramic creations this winter.
2023 was the show's 10th anniversary year, which kicked off with a special episode in which past winners competed for the chance to be named Portrait Artist of the Decade. The returning artists were asked to paint national treasure Dame Judi Dench for the opportunity to win the highly coveted title.
The show also broke a Guinness World Record for the most people painting in situ and online simultaneously on 30th September, with Sir Lenny Henry as the celebrity sitter. Sir Lenny was painted for the National Portrait Gallery by last year's winner, Morag Caister, and is delighted to return to the show.
Sir Lenny Henry said: “I loved sitting for Portrait Artist of the Year in 2022 and it was a real honour to take part. This year was a little different, but no less momentous. I’m so grateful for the chance to be invited back to play my part in what will hopefully be a new world record for the history books!”
The Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2023 episode recaps
This article will include weekly update on each episode when season 11 returns, which we will review as they air. We'll share all of the highs and lows, favourite lines from the episodes and add a short summary so you can recap the show's best bits this year. For now though you can catch up on all the details from last years season.
Watch this space!
Portrait Artist of the Decade
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Portrait Artist of the Year, the 2023 series kicked off with a special episode. Eight former winners of the show returned to compete for the title of Portrait Artist of the Decade.
As this was a momentous occasion, the show required an iconic sitter and the artists were thrilled when Dame Judi Dench walked into the room.
Dame Judi said she had only sat for a portrait once before, but she was excited to see what the artists came up with. However, she did warn the sitters that she might fall asleep during the process: "I'm not frightfully good at sitting still and I'm very inclined to drop off. After lunch is a tricky time for me."
The past winners clearly felt the pressure of capturing such a famous face and it took a few of them some time to settle on the right angle.
Charcoal artist Gareth Reid who won in 2017 found it difficult to get started. He said he was wrestling with the drawing to capture her likeness. "If you don't have the structure and relationships correct you're fighting a battle throughout the whole process," he said.
Meanwhile Christabel Blackburn worried that it looked as though Dame Judi had no fingers.
Since winning the show, many of the contestants have found great success in their artistic careers. Samira Addo entered Portrait Artist of the Year as an amateur and has been able to make it her full-time job. Christian Hook's 2014 win led to a string of celebrity commissions, including Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson.
The artists took on the challenge in a variety of materials and styles, producing an incredibly original selection of finished portraits, using everything from oil paints to coloured pencils.
Finally, it was time for Dame Judi to pick a portrait to take home. She was left speechless by the talent of the artists when the portraits were first revealed and needed a closer look to make her decision. She eventually chose a dreamlike oil painting by Christian Hook.
In a change to the usual routine, the judges were not asked to make a final call on the overall winner. The National Portrait Gallery's senior curator for contemporary collections, Sarah Howgate, was invited to make the difficult decision.
She chose the talented Gareth Reid to be the first ever Portrait Artist of the Decade. Congratulations, Gareth!
Episode one
Series 10 got off to an exciting start in 2023 with a new batch of artists who were keen to impress the judges. As usual, four amateur artists and four professionals went head to head with just four hours to create a celebrity portrait.
This week's celebrity sitters were singer Fleur East, scriptwriter Richard Curtis and broadcaster Emma Freud OBE.
To make her portrait more challenging, Emma was accompanied by Badger the cat (who she shares with her partner Richard Curtis), who she hoped would sit on her lap throughout the competition. It was not to be and an excited Badger was eager to explore the studio, before eventually settling in a basket.
This episode's artists came from across the UK and Ireland, with a broad range of experience. Léa Brunet-Wong was a first year student at Central St Martin's college in London and admitted that she'd never painted a portrait in four hours before.
Some of the contestants admitted to feeling nervous. Judge Kathleen Soriano asked amateur artist Matthew Lyons if his shaky lines were part of his painting technique. "No, no, it's part of my nerves!" he replied.
As usual, it was fascinating to watch the artistic process of the contestants. Tim Hall chose the grid method to make sure his painting of Emma Freud was perfectly in proportion, taking his time before applying paint quickly.
Meanwhile, Victoria Sills warmed up with a few quick sketches to make sure she wasn't tense before moving on to her portrait of Emma. (A top tip if you ever want to paint a portrait at speed!)
The sitters couldn't wait to see their finished portraits and were overwhelmed by the results. Fleur East was particularly moved by one of her portraits, which was painted by Liverpool-based art student Anna Loy. She said: "I'm absolutely floored by this, with this one I feel as though I'm feeling it rather than seeing it."
Richard Curtis was taken with Sinead Lawless's slightly melancholy portrait, which he thought captured a worried side of his character than most people didn't see.
Meanwhile, Emma chose Tim Hall's painting, which she felt captured her cheeky side.
After some intense discussions, the judges chose Léa, Anna and Sinead for their shortlist, before picking Anna to go through to the next round.
Episode two
This week's sitters are a trio of journalists: radio presenter Nihal Arthanayake, food critic Jay Rayner and breakfast TV presenter Susanna Reid.
The usual mix of professional and amateur artists settled down to capture the celebrity sitters in a variety of mediums, ranging from graphite pencil to oils.
The four hour time limit presented a challenge for some of this week's artists. Dale Sinoia, a customer care agent from Swansea, completed his submission to enter the show over four weeks. Luckily he'd come up with a strategy to tackle his portrait on the show and planned to focus on Jay Rayner's face before working on the background.
Dale wasn't the only contestant attempting to work in a photo-realistic drawing style. Eleanor Dunn attempted to draw Susanna Reid in graphite pencil – a real challenge in the limited time frame.
As usual, the portrait artists struggled to capture the likenesses of their sitters. There's always the risk of overworking a portrait and spoiling it. At half time, the judges worried that Drew Thomson had spoiled his likeness of Susanna Reid. However, when the painting was revealed Susanna was delighted with his work and said it was her favourite.
Meanwhile, Nihal chose Maria Underwood's portrait which captured his character and stylish dogtooth-patterned suit. Jay Rayner couldn't resist Gail Reid's wonderful painting, which showed his personality and figure perfectly.
Gail Reid, Paul Aston and Caroline De Peyrecave were shortlisted, with Gail ultimately being chosen to go through to the semi-final.
Episode three
Episode three's sitters were a real mixed bag! This week the artists were asked to paint actor, writer and comedian Rob Delaney, diplomat and former cabinet minister Rory Stewart and TV chef Ainsley Harriott. Rob Delaney was particularly excited to appear on Portrait Artist of the Year, as it's his favourite show.
One of this week's sitters, Rory Stewart, decided that he wanted to stand for the four hour contest! He stood with folded arms for the entirety of the competition, but only one artist (Lucy Milne from Gloucestershire) decided to paint his full figure. Fittingly, she also stood while completing her painting.
A couple of this week's artists chose to work on unusual surfaces. Yvadney Davis, a fashion stylist from London, painted her portrait of Ainsley Harriott onto vintage wallpaper. She described the surface as "greedy" because it absorbs a lot of paint, so it has to be primed before use. She said that using this kind of paper is a tribute to her grandparents, who came to the UK as part of the Windrush generation.
Lorena Levi, a London-based artist who studied fine art at Edinburgh University, opted to paint her portrait of Rory Stewart onto plywood. She worked in her characteristic style, creating a striking portrait that resembled an illustration. She left some of the plywood visible in her finished portrait, creating a rough, almost unfinished effect.
Rory Stewart once walked across Afghanistan and Matt Graysmith brought elements of Rory's journey into his art, making the folds of the politician's clothing look like mountain peaks.
The shortlisted artists were Yvadney Davis, Matt Graysmith and Lorena Levi, with Lorena going through to the semi-final.
"I think I've made friends with my canvas and I think it's enjoying being painted on. And I think we're having a happier relationship."
Lucy Milne
Episode four
This week's sitters are broadcasting legend Sue Barker, the nation's favourite gardener Alan Titchmarsh and author and psychotherapist Philippa Perry. The artists have a strict four-hour time limit on the first challenge.
The three sitters were asked to bring along an item that is personal and important to them, Sue brought an award given to her from the BBC, Alan brought his Grandfather's spade and Philippa brought a candle holder which has been passed down in her family.
It was off to a bumpy start for Lewis MacKenzies' painting Alan Titchmarsh, a trained neuroscientist turned to stay-at-home, Dad who couldn't figure out how to get his photo to appear on his iPad! But soon turned it around once he got going.
Several artists chose to paint from life, David Newens, painting Sue Barker, does not use a smartphone so he was painting from life. Some artists chose more unusual materials to paint on. David's favourite texture to paint onto is linen, saying the "texture pulls the paint off the brush". Maév Kelly, a Dublin-based artist has decided to paint her portrait on aluminium to create an interesting texture.
With the four hours up it's time to see who has most impressed the judges. Sue was up first, she loved all three but chose Davids. Alan chose Lewis' realistic portrait and remarked how much it looked like him. Philippa chose Davide's portrait which had a high focus on both the subject and the candle holder to take home.
The shortlisted artists were Davide Di Taranto, Lewis MacKenzie and Annette Tranter. The winner going through to the semi-final is Davide Di Taranto!
Episode five
We're getting through the heats of Portrait Artist of the Year and this week saw another talented bunch of hopeful artists taking on the four-hour challenge.
This week's sitters were an intriguing bunch: actor Nigel Havers was joined by journalist Mishal Hussein and Vanessa Kingori OBE, Conde Nast Chief Business Officer.
There were some unusual mediums in use in this episode: Brendan Megarity layered gelatin on top of gesso, then scratched the surface with a razor to create some fascinating textures in his work. It worked like a resist, adding an unpredictable element to his painting.
Shirley Johnson, a freelance artist from the Scottish Borders, spread out across three desks with all of her supplies. Her materials include alcohol markers, fine liners and pencils, which she used to create a drawing that looked almost like a painting.
As usual, the time pressure caused anxiety for some of the artists who were used to spending hours working on one painting. Daniel Nelis, an artist from Donegal, said: "It does feel like a bit more like a sport where every second counts, and you just have to power through."
Towards the end of the episode, some of the painters began to worry that they might spoil their portraits by doing too much. Yin Wang, an art student from London, worried that she would lose the likeness in her portrait of Mishal Hussein: "I'm afraid of ruining it by adding just one stroke."
Meanwhile, Sara Reeve stopped herself from painting by holding her brush behind her back.
The judges shortlisted Sara Reeve, Harriet Brady and Yin Wang, before selecting Sara to go through to the semi-finals.
Episode six
This week's episode featured a first for Portrait Artist of the Year: a contestant who used a tattoo gun to create his art. Tattoo artist and portrait painter Luke Edgar used his tattoo gun to make marks on acrylic paint, which was then layered with oils.
Unsurprisingly, this unusual technique really caught the attention of the watching crowds!
The other artists this week used more conventional mediums, but still created innovative works of art. Luckily for them, they had an intriguing bunch of sitters to work with: comedian Josh Widdecombe, Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas and opera singer Nicky Spence.
It's always fascinating to see the different methods used by the artists to create their portraits in the tight four-hour challenge. TV art director Keith Slote had his time carefully planned out and knew he wouldn't be working on his sitter's face until the third hour.
Tiggy Chadwick, a student from Staines, also made the judges nervous by leaving Josh's face until last.
Time management was more of an issue for this week's youngest contestant. Twenty-year-old engineering student Jasper Binns found himself focusing on the details of Josh Widdecombe's face and was worried that he would run out of time to complete the rest of his portrait.
The artists painting Nicky Spence had an additional challenge: he brought his dog, Glen, with him! However, Glen was well-behaved unlike Richard Curtis' chaotic cat Badger who we saw in episode one.
The shortlisted artists were Tiggy Chadwick, Wendy Barratt and Kelly Standish, with Wendy earning the chance to go through to next round.
"I've been a weekend painter really and this is sort of an endorsement. So yes, you can do it!"
Wendy Barratt
Episode seven
This week's sitters were a fresh-faced bunch: Youtuber and writer Joe Sugg and actors Daryl McCormack and Lenny Rush. Lenny is the youngest sitter in this series, as he's just 14, but he already has an impressive list of TV credits under his belt.
The judges commented that the youth of the sitters might present a challenge for the artists, as they have less lines on their faces, but the contestants coped admirably. The finished portraits were varied and expressive.
Carina Johnson, an art student from London, made the brave choice to draw her portrait in biro. Biro is an unforgiving medium, as it's labour-intensive and there's no way to correct mistakes. She ended up restarting her portrait, as she was unhappy with the likeness.
She wasn't the only artist who chose to work in pen. Jonny Kemp, a former teacher turned full-time artist from London, opted to work in fineliner pen. He produced a characterful drawing of Lenny Rush by building layers of cross-hatched shading.
"Time is running away. I'm panicking. My legs are moving very fast towards the exit."
Fiona Bell Currie
London-based artist Teoni Hinds wanted to challenge herself, so she decided to paint her portrait on a square canvas (she usually works on rectangular canvases). She also boldly ignored the green backdrop, as she felt purple worked better.
The artists scrambled to finish in the time, but all managed to produce vibrant finished works in the four-hour time limit.
The shortlisted artists were Robin Danely, Jed Timms and Ed Lawrenson, with Ed winning the chance to go through to the next round of the competition.
Episode eight
Can you believe it's the semi-final? This special occasion called for a very special sitter and it's fair to say many of the artists were starstruck! This week's sitter was radio presenter and former Spice Girl Emma Bunton, who was thrilled to appear on the show.
The heat winners returned to Battersea Arts Centre to battle it out for three spots in the Portrait Artist of the Year final. However, there was one artist from the heats that the judges just couldn't forget, so they awarded an extra place in the semi-final to Yvadney Davis. Yvadney stood out to the judges due to her unique painting style.
Kathleen Soriano said: "It's so hard in the heats losing some incredible artists and Yvadney just really stayed with us."
"It's so hard in the heats losing some incredible artists and Yvadney just really stayed with us."
Portrait Artist of the Year judge Kathleen Soriano
The pressure was really on for the semi-final and it was clear that the judges had high expectations. "Today has got to go so much further than likeness," said judge Kate Bryan. "We need to know that these artists that we've put through in the final have a chance of a museum-level commission, so it has to be an authentic spectacular work of art as well as a portrait."
Despite the pressures of the final, some of the sitters still chose to challenge themselves. Sara Reeve and Gail Reed both opted to work on larger canvases than normal, taking a "go big or go home" approach.
Meanwhile Davide Di Taranto got stuck into his diptych (pair of canvases), quickly capturing Emma's likeness as well as her iconic platform boots. Other artists took longer to flesh out their portraits, with Ed Lawrenson taking the time to block out the basic shapes before adding in Emma's features.
Tai-Shan Schierenberg pointed out that Emma's beauty presented challenges for the artists and that many struggled to get a good likeness as a result. However, many made a feature of Emma's striking blue eyes to make their art shine.
Towards the end of the contest, the artists had to make the call whether to continue working on their paintings and risk ruining the likeness. Wendy Barratt worried that she would spoil her painting by "fiddling", so decided to step away from her canvas.
Emma was really moved by the finished portraits and chose Wendy's portrait to take home.
After some tough deliberations, the judges decided that Wendy Barratt, Davide Di Taranto and Lorena Levi should all go through to next week's final.
Episode nine
The final of Portrait Artist of the Year 2023 saw three impressive artists return to compete for a life-changing commission. This episode provided the opportunity to celebrate someone who's been part of Portrait Artist of the Year since its inception: broadcaster, author and presenter Dame Joan Bakewell.
Dame Joan said that this was her final appearance on the show and she'll be greatly missed. However, she got to finish in style as the last sitter of the series.
The sitters needed to capture Joan's character in their work, which proved a challenge. Wendy Barratt said she was fascinated by Joan's face. "It tells a story, she said. "There's a wealth of knowledge in there."
Meanwhile, Lorena Levi said that Joan's eyes "held a lot of character" and found her portrait an exciting prospect.
Davide Di Taranto had been honing his skills for the final, as he wanted to make sure he could complete his portrait in the allotted time, which meant adapting his painting style. However, two hours in he felt that he still hadn't caught Joan's likeness.
In addition to being judged on their final portraits, the artists were also given the opportunity to show what they could create when given more time. The artists all chose someone meaningful: Lorena painted her partner Sam, who she described as the funniest person she knew. Wendy created a portrait of her husband Fred, who is a former circus performer, while Davide opted to paint his friend Miguel.
They were given four days to complete their commissions, so they could give the judges a taste of what they could do if they won the competition.
Finally time was up and it was up to Joan to choose her favourite painting to take home. After some deliberation, she picked Davide's painting which showed Joan in the style of a religious icon surrounded by gold leaf.
Then it was left to the judges to make their decision. They took into consideration the paintings from the final, as well as the artists' submissions and portraits from previous rounds. After some intense discussions, they named Wendy Barratt as this year's winner!
I always had a dream. I thought perhaps I could do it, but not realistically – and how wrong I was!
Wendy Barratt, Portrait Artist of the Year 2023 winner
The judges were blown away by Wendy's skill throughout the series. "Wendy is a great painter with a sensitivity for the human condition and that combination is just magical," said Tai-Shan Schierenberg.
"I always know when we pick the right artist because I'm already excited about the portrait commission that they're going to give us," added Kathleen Soriano. "The combination of Dr Jane Goodall and Wendy is just a marriage made in heaven."
Who won Portrait Artist of the Year in 2023?
This year's winner is Wendy Barratt! Wendy won a commission to paint legendary conservationist Dr Jane Goodall and the finished portrait will hang in the National Portrait Gallery in London.
Who won Portrait Artist of the Year in 2022?
2022's winner was London-based Morag Caister, who won the opportunity to paint a portrait of Sir Lenny Henry. Her finished commission will hang in the National Portrait Gallery's permanent collection.
Who won Sky Portrait Artist of the Year in 2021?
23-year-old Calum Stevenson scooped the 2021 prize with his beautiful portrait of Barry Humphries in the final. In earlier rounds he wowed the judges with his realistic portraits of Kelly Macdonald and Pink Floyd's Nick Mason.
His painting of Nicola Benedetti is displayed at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh.
Get ready for Portrait Artist of the Year 2024
We're looking forward to seeing the work created by the contestants on this year's show – and who will win the coveted title of Sky Portrait Artist of the Year. Each week the contestants will push their artistic skills to the limit and produce a stunning likeness of a celebrity.
For more updates about the latest series, head to the show's official website: www.skyartsartistoftheyear.tv/portrait or search on social for the hashtags #portraitartistoftheyear and #PAOTY
How to become an incredible portrait artist
If you're feeling inspired by the latest series of Portrait Artist of the Year, painting a watercolour portrait can be a good place to begin.
It'll help you to get to grips with the basic skills that you'll need to create your own stunning portraits. You'll also develop your watercolour painting skills with the expert guidance of artist and illustrator Rhiannon Bull. Learn how to paint a watercolor portrait with Gathered.
