Behind the scenes at Winsor & Newton Masterclass LIVE with artist Rebecca Boyd Allen

In April this year Cass Art Islington played host to a very special event and a world first - Winsor and Newton Masterclass LIVE. Artist and Winsor and Newton expert Rebecca Boyd Allen joined us for an evening of all things water colour. Participants watched as Rebecca demonstrated her mastery over materials with her water colour techniques and, as a special event for the evening they also had the opportunity to meet the Winsor and Newton lab technician and watch as he demonstrated exactly how Winsor and Newton make their legendary paint.

BP Portrait Award 2018: Exclusive Artist Interviews Part 2

The BP Portrait Award is back for its thirty-ninth year at the National Portrait Gallery. The prestigious painting competition brings us the very best in contemporary portraiture today; showcasing a breadth of approaches to portraiture this year’s award includes the unusual, the beautiful and the uncanny. The top prize of £35,000 was awarded to Miriam Escofet for her ethereal portrait of her mother: An Angel at My Table, with Ania Hobson winning the Young Artist Award for her painting A portrait of two female painters.  

This years exhibition has ranged from self-portraits, to portraits of friend, family and strangers - with the occasional famous face too! This year’s group of artists truly express the breadth and diversity of contemporary portraiture, from detailed hyperrealism to bold blocks of colour. They push the boundaries of figurative painting and show us that portraiture is still very much present in painterly conversation. Portraiture and figurative painting is as relevant and exciting today as it has been for hundreds of years.

We caught up with some of the shortlisted artists of 2018 for an insight into their process, their must-have materials to achieve their unique approaches to painting and the inspiration behind their works:

BP Portrait Award 2018: Exclusive Artist Interviews Part 1

The BP Portrait Award is back for its thirty-ninth year at the National Portrait Gallery. The prestigious painting competition brings us the very best in contemporary portraiture today; showcasing a breadth of approaches to portraiture this year’s award includes the unusual, the beautiful and the uncanny. The top prize of £35,000 was awarded to Miriam Escofet for her ethereal portrait of her mother: An Angel at My Table, with Ania Hobson winning the Young Artist Award for her painting A portrait of two female painters.  

This years exhibition has ranged from self-portraits, to portraits of friend, family and strangers - with the occasional famous face too! This year’s group of artists truly express the breadth and diversity of contemporary portraiture, from detailed hyperrealism to bold blocks of colour. They push the boundaries of figurative painting and show us that portraiture is still very much present in painterly conversation. Portraiture and figurative painting is as relevant and exciting today as it has been for hundreds of years.

We caught up with some of the shortlisted artists of 2018 for an insight into their process, their must-have materials to achieve their unique approaches to painting and the inspiration behind their works:

Chantal Joffe: Personal Feeling is the Main Thing, Exhibition at The Lowry

Personal Feeling is the Main Thing is the latest exhibition from renowned painter Chantal Joffe on show at The Lowry as part of Week 53 Festival. A tour de force in British painting this exhibition brings Chantals bold and expressive imagery to Manchester, where she reflects on the Week 53’s theme ‘Coming of Age’. Her works hang alongside four paintings by pioneering German painter Paula Modersohn-Becker – selected by Joffe herself. 

A KALEIDOSCOPIC CITY ABOVE LONDON – IRINA KIRCHUK AND BOLD TENDENCIES

Argentinan artist Irina Kirchuk built a vibrant installation out of discarded materials, overlooking the London skyline.

Interview with Stella Kapezanou: Winner of the MiAL Bursary Award

We’re delighted to continue supporting Made in Arts London (MiAL), a professional development initiative organised by University of the Arts London, by awarding a £500 Cass Art Materials Bursary Award. We caught up with the winner of this years award, Stella Kapezanou to find out more about her stunning large scale paintings that captured our imagination. 

Rosso: Going Solo - The Holly Bush Emerging Woman Painter Prize

This June we are excited to host Ecclestone Art Agency and The Holly Bush, Hampstead for their delivery of Rosso: Going Solo. This new solo exhibition in our Art Space in Islington is the culmination of Rosso’s achievements in the twelve months since winning The Holly Bush Emerging Woman Painter Prize. After receiving the prize in 2017 Rosso has continued to move onwards and upwards with her career at a rapid pace. In this past year she has had exhibitions at The Bloomsbury and the Mall Galleries, and is now on show at Zebra One Gallery in Hampstead. We caught up with Rosso to talk some more about her practice: 

Interview with Zoe Wenban: Winner of The Cass Art Bursary at The Batsford Prize 2018

We're thrilled to continue supporting The Batsford Prize by awarding a £500 Cass Art Bursary to the talented Zoe Wenban she's graduating this summer from a BA in Textile Design from Falmouth University and her wonderful designs excited and inspired us. We caught up with Zoe to find out more about her work and plans for the future:

Interview with Nina Cosford - Illustrator of the Cass Art Family Timeline

Over the last year, we've been working with the talented illustrator and artist Nina Cosford to create the Cass Family Timeline. Her colourful, cut-out style illustrations have truly brought our history to life! We caught up with Nina recently to talk about her experience during the project and to gain an insight into her creative process and life as a freelance illustrator.

ARTIST INTERVIEW: CHRIS MAKIN, WINNER OF THE CASS ART AWARD AT XHIBIT 2018