Winners chosen from 29,000 pieces of art
Three winners have been chosen from almost 30,000 entries to the Little Painting Challenge, a nationwide search for Britain's best amateur artists. Author-illustrator of the internationally bestselling How to Train Your Dragon series Cressida Cowell said the judging panel were impressed by the high-standard of the entries, especially for their scope of artistic styles and breath of imagination.
For The Little Painting Challenge the public were asked to create their own masterpiece on a postcard and entries were received from all corners of the country, across all ages and experience levels, encompassing a wide range of techniques and subject matter.
Out of the 29,000 postcards submitted, 3 overall winners were chosen from the different categories, over 16 beginners, over 16 experienced and 7 to 15 year olds, with a further 1000 of the artists having their work displayed at The Whitworth, Manchester’s Gallery in the Park, in a special exhibition that opens on the 1st May.
Over 16 Experienced Category Winner
Full-time dad Tim Matthews couldn’t quite believe that he had won. The painting is of his 4 month old son Nathaniel, he paints as a hobby and doesn’t usually do portraits.
Judge Cressida Cowell said: “There’s a feeling of intimacy between the two… It could have been a sentimental painting but it is not - the strong and confident brush strokes prevent it from being sentimental. I like the idea that the hand is protecting the baby from the dark cold side of the picture.”
Self portrait wins 7 - 15 year old category
Amelia Johnson won the 7-15 year old cateogry with her self-portrait using techniques she’d seen on The Big Painting Challenge. She saw one of the artists on the programme using a flat brush and thought she’d like to try using a brush like that herself.
Cressida Cowell said: “I find the painting very haunting. It is so simply and graphically done… I feel emotionally drawn to it. It is a very strong and powerful picture”
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BBC Breakfast talks to two of the winners
The Little Painting Challenge
Two of the winners, joined one of the judges on BBC Breakfast.
Train journey inspires winner of over 16 category
Charlotte Wood from Matlock won the Over 16 beginner category with a picture that was inspired by people she saw on a train journey. She liked the way they mirrored each other and thought the composition worked really well. She did a sketch on the train and then worked on the piece when she got home.
Cressida Cowell said: “There’s a story beyond the painting… I like the way the couple appear so stationary compared to the movement of the train.”
The three overall winners will have their works displayed at The Whitworth, Manchester’s Gallery in the Park, in a special exhibition that opens on the 1st May, along with 1,000 other entries.
