Now in its 29th year, The Sunday Times Watercolour Competition is the largest and most prestigious prize for contemporary watercolour painting in the UK. Generously supported by Smith & Williamson, the accountancy and investment management group, the competition aims to celebrate and reward brilliance and innovation in the medium of watercolour.
The Sunday Times Watercolour Competition provides an opportunity for artists across the UK to redefine and celebrate the beauty and diversity of watercolour and water-based media, whether through abstract or figurative, contemporary or traditional painting. It offers a generous total prize fund of £17,500, including a First Prize of £10,000, Second Prize of £6,000, and the Smith & Williamson Cityscape Prize of £1,500. Talented local artist Stephanie Tuckwell is in the running for the top £10,000 prize; her work will be displayed alongside the other finalists in the prestigious Mall Galleries, London.
Stephanie Tuckwell’s ‘Flow’ watercolour, 2016
Fifty-three watercolour works, which reflect the breadth of the medium, have been selected by a panel of leading figures from the art world. The 2016 judging panel includes Akash Bhatt, Winner of Sunday Times Watercolour Competition 2015; Sara Dudman, artist; Simon Oldfield, Director of Simon Oldfield Gallery; Desmond Shawe-Taylor CVO, Surveyor of the Queen’s Pictures, and Louis Wise, Critic and Writer, The Sunday Times. The Winners will be announced in the Culture section of the Sunday Times on Sunday 28th August.
James Judge, Unit 18, watercolour, 2016
The shortlisted works, including Stephanie’s, will be shown at the Mall Galleries, London from 19 – 24 September 2016, followed by The Smith & Williamson Tour to venues across the UK, including Parabola Arts centre, Cheltenham (24 – 29 October 2016) and Guildford House Gallery, Guildford (10 December 2016 – 28 January 2017)
