Now in its ninth series, PAOTY continues to break all audience records on the Sky Arts channel, with the repeats continuing to perform well above the channel average.  Staged once again at the Battersea Arts Centre, Stephen Mangan and Joan Bakewell welcomed a varied array of distinguished sitters from all walks of life, including Benjamin Zephaniah, Dame Stella Rimington and Lulu.  After eight thrilling heats and the semi-final, the last three artists painted a portrait of the man who led us through the pandemic – Sir Jonathan Van-Tam.  The eventual competition winner was commissioned to paint a portrait of Sir Lenny Henry, for the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery in London. 

As well as providing a huge and welcome to the careers of hundreds of artists each year since 2013, the series leaves a lasting legacy for the producer and broadcaster – by placing the winners’ commissioned portrait in prestigious galleries and institutions up and down the country and abroad.  These have included portraits of Sir Tom Jones in the National Gallery of Wales, Alan Cumming in the National Gallery of Scotland, Nile Rodgers in the Royal Albert Hall and Graham Norton in the National Gallery of Ireland in Dublin.

The Portrait Artist of the Year format is produced in several countries including, most recently, Norway, and the taped show is available via our distributors. 

For more information about Portrait Artist of the Year, visit Sky Arts Artist of the Year.

Works of art produced by many of our artists are for sale via Artist of the Year: Gallery.