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“Newell Convers Wyeth” by Kate Brockman of Pennsylvania. Bronze; 23 inches by 14 inches by 18 inches. The Portrait Society of America's 27th International Portrait Competition, First Place Sculpture Award winner. Courtesy of the Portrait Society of America
The Portrait Society of America (PSA) recently announced the winners of its 27th International Portrait Competition (IPC). The competition received over 3,000 entries from around the world, including works in oil, clay, wood, resin, pastel, charcoal, graphite, colored pencil, and Carrara marble.
The IPC judges assessed the artists’ technical skills, and they also looked for original concepts and compositions showing aesthetic complexity and cultural significance.
British painter Frances Bell won both the William F. Draper Grand Prize and the People’s Choice Award for her self-portrait, “Yellow Trainers.” The PSA’s “The Art of the Portrait” conference attendees—portraitists, art collectors, and art lovers—voted for the People’s Choice Award winner.
“I really can’t begin to say how thrilled I am with the awards—it’s fantastic, humbling, and surreal,” she told the Portrait Society of America in an email.
Bell painted herself wearing a black waistcoat and pants, with a white silk shirt, sitting crossed legged on a checkered floor, while leaning against a striped wall. She painted most of the scene in black and white, and then there are those yellow trainers (sneakers). “I loved painting this piece. It was very cathartic to me to play with all of these elements of geometry, and contrast, and that this painting has come to this kind of recognition is deeply touching,” she wrote on Instagram.
“Yellow Trainers” by Frances Bell of Northumberland, UK. Oil on canvas; 35 1/2 inches by 36 1/2 inches. The Portrait Society of America's 27th International Portrait Competition, William F. Draper Grand Prize winner and People’s Choice Award winner. Courtesy of the Portrait Society of America
The First Place Painting Award went to American painter Joseph Q. Daily for his portrait of the 98th mayor of Philadelphia, Michael A. Nutter. Daily was thrilled to win. On Instagram, he thanked Nutter for “the time, energy, and trust that he brought to the [portrait painting] process.” Nutter posed for a painted head study and hundreds of reference photographs. The commissioned portrait hangs in Philadelphia City Hall; Daily depicted the hall behind Nutter in the painting. Daily also included a crowd scene in Dilworth Park, the first he’d attempted, combining several photographic references to make the composition.
“Mayor Michael A. Nutter” by Joseph Q. Daily of New York. Oil on linen; 39 inches by 52 inches. The Portrait Society of America's 27th International Portrait Competition, First Place Painting Award winner. Courtesy of the Portrait Society of America
The IPC awarded Canadian-born artist David Jamieson the First Place Drawing Award for a portrait of his father, “Pathologist–Portrait of Dr. Maurice Jamieson.” Jamieson won the same award last year for his drawing “Writer’s Block.”
“Pathologist–Portrait of Dr. Maurice Jamieson” by David Jamieson of Illinois. Graphite, carbon black, pastel, ink wash on paper; 26 inches by 20 inches. The Portrait Society of America's 27th International Portrait Competition, First Place Drawing Award winner. Courtesy of the Portrait Society of America
British-born sculptor Kate Brockman won the First Place Sculpture Award for her portrait bust of American illustrator N.C. Wyeth. Philadelphia-based Brockman had long admired Wyeth’s work, and she found reading his biography during the sculpting process particularly enriching.
“Newell Convers Wyeth” by Kate Brockman of Pennsylvania. Bronze; 23 inches by 14 inches by 18 inches. The Portrait Society of America's 27th International Portrait Competition, First Place Sculpture Award winner. Courtesy of the Portrait Society of America
Bell echoed many of the award winners’ comments when she said on Instagram: “The society and the community it has fostered have become a stunning example of what can be achieved with determination, courage, and deep joy in the art form we all love. … We artists are very lucky.”
Lorraine Ferrier writes about fine arts and craftsmanship for The Epoch Times. She focuses on artists and artisans, primarily in North America and Europe, who imbue their works with beauty and traditional values. She's especially interested in giving a voice to the rare and lesser-known arts and crafts, in the hope that we can preserve our traditional art heritage. She lives and writes in a London suburb, in England.
