Delighted again to contribute to The John Byrne Awards. Last year I was asked to host and present the awards. This year I accepted the honour of serving on the judging panel. The standard of the entries from young folk aged between 16-30 years was breathtaking. The work entries were considered, mature, passionate and thought provoking. What a joy and inspiration to view. It's never easy to pick a winner especially from such talent but one after many hours of discussion was selected and will be announced on Saturday night at Central Hall. There will also be an exhibition of selected entries. It's a free event, however, due to demand it is ticketed so please visit Citizen Ticket website for further details.
I have also agreed to create a portrait of John (from the session above) to be auctioned as one of the main prizes later this year at The John Byrne Awards dinner in conjunction with Lyon and Turnbull. This portrait will be very rare as I have decided to restrict it to a very low edition. It may even be like John... unique. More details will follow in June but if you'd like to reserve a table then contact The John Byrne Awards directly.
THE JOHN BYRNE AWARDS:
7-9 PM, Saturday 16 February
Central Hall, Edinburgh
JOHN BYRNE AWARDS JUDGING PANEL: Hamish Matheson, Cairn Energy; Janice Forsyth, TV and Radio Presenter / Producer; Christina Jansen, MD The Scottish Gallery and myself.