ROI 2022 Annual Exhibition – Prize winners
ROI 2022 Annual Exhibition – Prize winners

The Royal Institute of Oil Painters and Mall Galleries would like to congratulate all prizewinners at the ROI Annual Exhibition 2022 and give a special thank you to all our prize-givers.

The Artist Magazine Award

The winning artist will be featured in a forthcoming issue of The Artist magazine, print and digital editions.

Adam Ralston AROI, You’re Gonna Need a Bigger Bowl, 48 x 48 cm (62 x 62 cm framed)

“The title refers to a famous line ‘You’re gonna need a bigger boat’ in the film Jaws. I’ve been painting these breakfast table series for a number of years. They’re part of an ongoing series, and I just had to paint this Jaws cereal box when I saw it.” – Adam Ralston

The Dry Red Press Award

The winning work will be published as a greeting card by Dry Red Press in their ‘Prize Winners’ range.

Lizzie Black, The Cream Tea, 30 x 40 cm (44 x 54 cm framed)

“Some things don’t change like the Cream Tea! Quintessential Cornish afternoon treat. I love choreographing these theatrical displays of china and flowers in my garden. Developed during lockdown when I couldn’t go out plein air painting, they are now part of my practice.” – Lizzie Black

Frank Herring Easel Award

An award of a versatile easel.

Andrew Hird, Morning Shadows – Juan les Pins, 30 x 20 cm (43 x 34 cm framed)

“An oil study on board of the waterfront of the Hotel Belle Rives in Juan les Pins, inpsired by the morning light and shade across the terrace and the interesting pattern of the umbrellas and their shadows.” – Andrew Hird

Winsor & Newton Young Artist Awards (for artists aged 30 or under)

First Prize: £1,000 Winsor & Newton Fine Art Materials; Second Prize: £600 Winsor & Newton Fine Art Materials; Third Prize: £400 Winsor & Newton Fine Art Materials

First Prize: Jie Zhuang, An Ordinary Day, 80 x 100 cm (90 x 110 cm framed)

“The large brushstrokes without hesitation appear on the linen, with ease and rigor. The painter especially likes to depict the eyes. The picture of speaking through the eyes is more sincere. The flowing paint also expresses a state of unfinishedness, although the image is frozen. On canvas, but with a sense of shifting between the eternal and the fleeting…” – Jie Zhuang

Second Prize: Robert Ware, Self Portrait with Pearl Earring, 30 x 27 cm (34 x 31 cm framed)

“This painting is inspired by Johannes Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring” (1665) in which the subject appears candid yet also retains her distance. If felt a congenial model for my self-portrait, intriguing, mysterious with an unplaceable intention leaving open possibilities for interpretation with no single correct answer. Emphasis on mark-making is a key component in how the painting comes together. I use impasto paint to ensure each brushstroke has body and holds particular and deliberate intention. Every stroke is connected and latticed together to create a weave that conveys the forms of the painting.” – Robert Ware

Third Prize: Thomas Golunski, Amy Li, 30 x 30 cm (35 x 35 cm framed)

Winsor & Newton Award

£150 worth of Winsor & Newton Fine Art Materials.

Anna Redwood, A Thousand Hours, 39 x 63 cm (44 x 68 cm framed)

The Phyllis Roberts Award

An award of £2,000 for an artist aged 30 or under.

Kayoon Anderson, Self Portrait with James, 100 x 75 cm

“A painting of an everyday scene, at home with my husband. Trying to use shape and colour to construct an interior scene somewhere between realism and abstraction.” – Kayoon Anderson

The Tony Merrick Memorial Prize

An award of £250 in memory of the late Tony Merrick ROI (1948-2018).

Michelle Anderson, Hinterland, 31 x 41 cm (35 x 45 cm framed)

“A portrayal suggestive of a landscape interface between development and nature – a ‘no man’s land’.” – Michelle Anderson

The ROI Emerging Artist Prize

A prize of £250 and the opportunity to spend a day with one of the Institute’s members, for an artist aged 30 or under at the time of submission.

Liza Sivakova, Anxiety, 25 x 15 cm (28 x 28 cm framed)

The Small Painting Prize

An award of £250, open to members and non-members, for the best small painting on display (maximum dimension of 12 inches or 30.5 cm, excluding frame).

Sarah Manolescue, Last Night, Bramshott, 23 x 26 cm (31 x 34 cm framed)

“A frenzied paint in February in my local common at sundown. I love how freeing painting a sunset from life can be – no time to think, intuition takes over. Although simple in composition and approach, I think I captured the evening’s clarity of light. Squint at the painting and you’re there.” – Sarah Manolescue

The Alan Gourley Memorial Award

An annual prize of £1,000, awarded for a painting of outstanding merit.

Tom Stevenson ROI, The Long Meadow in Moonlight, 31 x 72 cm (46 x 87 cm framed)

The Le Clerc Fowle Medal

In memory of Anne Le Clerc Fowle, presented annually for an outstanding group of paintings.

John Walsom ROI RSMA for his body of work.

Pictured: Lambretta Nights, 76 x 61 cm (87 x 72 cm framed)

The Menena Joy Schwabe Memorial Award

An award of £250 for an outstanding oil painter.

Benjamin Hope NEAC PS ROI RP RSMA for his body of work.

Pictured: Super 8, 36 x 36 cm (46 x 46 cm framed)

The Dartington Crystal Chalice

Linda Alexander ROI for her body of work.

Pictured: Copper Pot and Greengages, 25 x 33 cm (40 x 48 cm framed)

The ROI Themed Painting Prize

£500 for the standout painting on the theme of ‘Changing Times’.

Kayla Martell, Roe, 20 x 25 cm (25 x 30 cm framed)

“One of the most significant current events is the repeal of Roe in the US. This was my interpretation of that. The book is the recognizable Handmaid’s tale. The door is opened slightly, as if someone were spying on this scene. The cloth draped in the bathtub, the colour red (blood). A skull in the mirror – the impact of repealing Roe upon women. The wine balancing on top of the toilet paper is to bring discomfort to the viewer.” – Kayla Martell