​I was first contacted by a member of the production team on Instagram in early '25 to ask whether I’d consider applying for Portrait Artist of the Year. I entered, but wasn’t selected. At the time, I don’t think I really had a strong enough self-portrait. A month later I painted one that went on to be included in the Ruth Borchard Self-Portrait Prize online exhibition, which may have made a difference... but there we are.

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Not long after this, I was contacted again, this time to apply for Landscape Artist of the Year. A month later I found out I’d been accepted as one of the eight artists competing in Heat 5. The painting here, of my (previous) garden and the fields beyond, was my submission.

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For those who don’t know me, I also work in television as a director, in a completely different genre. I make natural history, adventure and observational documentaries. (My recent series Becoming Elephant, broadcast on Sky Nature, was independently produced and distributed by Blue Ant Media). I was open about this from the outset, and the production team were clear that there was no conflict as it is a very different segment of the industry.

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I do think my experience of filming on location, understanding the pressure of being observed and knowing how editing works, actually made me more nervous than had I been going in relatively blind. Being on "the wrong side of the camera" was, frankly, terrifying.

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I work freelance, and have always painted alongside my directing work and in between contracts. ​Over the last 5 years my art practice has become a constant backbone to my life. I now have a large studio space, paint plein air regularly (often on dog walks), sell my work and also work to commission.

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The studio is where I make larger works, take risks, and experiment. For me, painting is less about exact replication and more about capturing a sense of being somewhere. I often take small plein air studies and work them up into larger pieces in the studio, usually in acrylic with oil layered on top. Some remain representational; others become more abstracted.

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My plein air process is usually quite private and instinctive. I don’t paint right next to footpaths - I prefer not to engage with people while I work - and I tend to go off the beaten track. I usually work around A4 scale, making quick sketches, and I’m drawn to natural landscapes for the sense of freedom they offer.

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Cut to Landscape Artist of the Year...

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I was confronted with a cityscape - London - with every move watched and, naturally, lots of interruptions. I decided to go large: 24 × 36 inches, roughly nine times bigger than I normally work when painting outdoors. I do like to take risks! To make things even more interesting, we were painting aboard HMS Wellington (albeit moored on the Thames) on a windy day, with plenty of passing river traffic to keep everything gently swaying.

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I normally enjoy a challenge. My directing work has put me in some fairly gnarly situations - raiding armed illegal logging operations with Brazilian military police, wading through croc-infested rivers, walking through lion territory with camera equipment on my back - but I can honestly say I have never felt as nervous as I was for this. And I knew I wasn’t at risk of being mauled!

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Everything in me might have wanted to push the opportunity away. But as artists, this kind of exposure - good or bad - is hard to say no to.

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I don’t usually paint cityscapes and so I approached it through the lens that feels most natural to me. My documentary work in landscapes at the frontline of climate change has made me attentive to weather, scale and atmosphere as narrative forces in their own right. Early on that day, the city felt small and insubstantial beside the weight of the sky and the movement of the river, so I allowed the painting to reflect that imbalance. The emphasis on mood over description, and on nature over architecture, is deliberate.

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I took several large panels with me and chose a vertical format - one I’m instinctively drawn to. I like taking a slice of the landscape and allowing different elements to sit together in a way that feels visually resolved, even if it’s hard to explain why.​ I don’t see myself as a traditional landscape painter. I work expressively and intuitively, whatever the subject. 

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Working with acrylics in the heat was manageable, though I promptly smashed my spray bottle while setting up! The team were incredibly kind, clearing it up and finding me another one.

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Speaking to Eva and Kathleen on camera was genuinely reassuring - both calm, generous and knowledgeable, exactly the energy you need in that situation.

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As the tide rose I started to feel a little seasick, so I was glad I had kept food intake to a minimum. In the final hour, once the crew had what they needed, I put some music on and finally got into flow. From that point on, the day became genuinely enjoyable, and I’d happily recommend the experience to other artists.

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It was an incredible feeling to reach the shortlist alongside Tom Winter and Libby Walker - a very deserving winner - and I can’t wait to see how she does in the semi-finals.

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Above is the piece I produced on the day - I'd love to know your thoughts! 

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