News — Competition

The Semi-Final of Sky Arts Landscape Artist of the Year is over and I'm in the Final. The competition certainly got tougher at Felixstowe in this weeks episode of Sky Landscape Artist of the Year 2018 - but it wasn't until the end of the days' filming that I really had a chance to see what the other artists had done. It fascinates me how many different interpretations you can have of the same scene - I always feels art is like a language that's personal to the individual. Approach As a competitor on Sky Arts, you're never given much information about where...

Victoria Lucie by Greg Mason This large canvas is my official entry for this years BP Portrait Awards - held at the National Portrait Gallery each year in London. My subject is Victoria Lucie, a young actress - who recently starred in Dartmoor Killing - an award winning independent movie shot on location in Devon. This painting began with a session in my studio on the edge of Dartmoor a couple of years ago. The plain interior and simple accessories are typical of my pared-back approach. I like to put the subject as hero so that we experience the 'presence' of the...

This is a special painting for the RP (Royal Portrait Society) competition this year. The subject is a family member Eileen Ellis RDI - a magnificent lady, now in her 80s, who spent her life designing textiles. Most of us at some point in our lives will have sat upon or walked on her work - in tube trains, aeroplanes and airports throughout the world. Achieving success was never the main driver for her and many generations of students at the Royal College of Art will testify to her imense generosity and infinite knowledge of her subject. Recognised in the 1980s...

I have always loved watching Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year - even from the first series when Nick Lord won the commission to paint Hilary Mantel I was enthralled by watching the process of different artists as they struggled to capture the essence of their sitters. Condensing the process into a four hour window seemed to bring an immediacy and excitement that made for great viewing. The reaction of sitter and judges - the arguments and disagreements - the elation and disappointment, it was all there. When Christian Hook won in 2014 - he took the format to a...