Author Description

The BP Portrait Award showcases the very best in contemporary portrait painting from around the world. For thirty-three years, of which the last twenty-three have been sponsored by BP, the exhibition has presented outstanding and innovative new work in a variety of styles and approaches, and it continues to be a highlight of the annual art calendar. From informal and personal studies of friends and family, to revealing paintings of famous faces, this year's exhibition features fifty-five works selected from 2,187 international entries. These include the four shortlisted artists - Aleah Chapin for Auntie, Alan Coulson for Richie Culver, Ignacio Estudillo for El abuelo (Augusta Estudillo) and Jamie Routley for Tony Lewis - as well as the work of the BP Travel Award 2011 winner Jo Fraser.