From Canvas to National Gallery - Portrait Artist of the Year

The poor girl.
Everyone is politely congratulatory but I think she’s well aware that she wasn’t equal to the task!
The three stooges have egg on their faces and spout even more word salad than usual 🤢

I don’t care if he is black, your a thief

You are a thief

And then she have the audacity to put someone black the nerve of these people

I think she missed the likeness... Her style is not a style I'm drawn to. I do blame what final portraits we end up with on the judges...

I like the artist and and her exceptional portrait❤🎉

Morag is a Contemporary artist❤🎉

The painting is good, but while I see Lenny’s posture, I don’t see his likeness in the portrait at all. I wouldn’t have recognized him. I think that a portrait has to look like the person to some degree, or it really isn’t a portrait.

My grandma always said, " if you don't have anything good to say...", something good, hum... anything good . Well, she painted him sitting on a .... stick? At least he's not floating in the air.

What an amazing portrait. Lenny looks like he’s deep in thought, thinking about his next project. Next time I’m in London I will definitely be going to the Portrait Gallery to see it for myself.

This comment section is filled with jealous artists/people.

I came here to see comments thinking, is it just me? I couldn't believe the superb artists who were passed over for this one...her portraits all look out of context to me - human forms floating in air; they say nothing at all about the subject. Seems she's avoiding faces & backgrounds. They look like the quick drawings we did in high school commercial art class. That's her style, fine, but I don't think it's of the caliber for a prestigious gallery.

Beautiful portrait. Fabulous relationship and respect of painter and sitter. A mature man, happy and purposeful in his skin. Just a great portrait.

Such an absorbing show. Thank you SO much for posting them!!!

Les pasa a los jueces por no saber escoger a los mejores artistas 🎨

Very disappointing. When chosen , given her style , what did the judges expect. Don’t misunderstand, her artistic is admirable but not museum quality .

It's like an illustration hardly fine art. Nit picking I wouldn't have recognised it as Sir Lenny Henry

This person is selfless. He is like a mirror, he reflects the other person and gives this person what he is of himself . Or gives what the other person aspires for, without any additional action, it comes from a platform of comfort

Its actually beautiful in the end!

Sad that there are so many comments who totaly dislike her work... l think she did quite good eve if she might not manage to get is absolute likness... Her style might not be to everyones taste and the jures might have been wrong in picking her, but this was their choice... We do not know if her sitter is really pleased or being polite BUT l think he was pleased and they had a kind of relationship... My thought was that she had done better paintings before, BUT she is young and that was her biggest challenge yet... l wish them all well and hope they all have a great future ahead of them. ..
There are so many great artists in Britan l would find it hard to exclude so many in all these challenges, because so many of all the artists either selfttaught or professional are so good and talented in their own way... So to me there is anyway not the only one the winner... All the partisipants in these shows are winners to me... and many more yet unknown talents are out there...

I got a title for this piece: "This wallet is killing my ass".... That line by Lenny Henry was hilarious, much better than Morag's jaggedy outline, which she focused too much on, failing to see the humanity of person sitting in front of her.... I just feel bad for Lenny Henry because this portrait was a real disappointment, he could have been Truly Honored by any of the other highly talented artists who competed for this privilege....

If I viewed this in a gallery I would not know who it was.

What a kind face this is - she has caught him beautifully. Well done young lady.

Sir Lenny Henry deserved better than this. IT'S DULL and boring. I'm not buying the "deep, shy serious thinker side reveal" here.
Utter nonsense.

Truly beautiful and well done but I’m sorry to say it doesn’t look like him. He’s not wide in the bottom with his face nor does he have a squat neck but the rendering is incredible.

Morag is so comforting.

I think she was the perfect pick to do the portrait. Lots of haters and I don't get it.

Morag perfectly captured exactly the kind of person Lenny showed himself to be in her presence. As someone who didn't know Mr. Henry beforehand, I have great appreciation for what she captured about him, exactly what I saw too while watching those conversations. He loved it too, because it isn't super bright and funny, but real!

Very well done, love it

No likeness, change the judges!

Showing the winning portrait on the opening graphic? So much for suspense.

Definitely need new judges..! 🤔 I'm sure that I am not the only one that feels that way..? Nothing against her talent But I thought there were other artists that were a little bit more on the upscale. And this is my opinion Just like you have yours. 🤗

I'm a professional designer, interdisciplinary artist (39 years), an artist director amd independent curator — I don't get it! 🤷🏾‍♀️🤷🏾‍♀️🤷🏾‍♀️

Yes, it's a nice illustration— not a painting. Why did that take all those setting, meetings and time?

That was an eady $10,000 for her. Just saying...

So many other artists in the that season of the show should have been selected.

As a curator and artistic director, I wouldn't have selected her as the winner nor her painting to go in the UK NPG.

The judges caused this mess. They use skilled artists as foils to lesser ones, which they invariably put through to the finals. The judges should be replaced.

I hate that shirt.

I think she captured the real person inside that needs the humor.

I don’t think Morag is all that skilled. Watching her scrub lines of oil with thin bent bristles without any apparent painting ability made me cringe. The unfinished blank canvas canvas style is one I have seen too often. It’s a shame that in the end she could not even get a close likeness. This is not her fault, but the fault of the judges who sent the uninitiated to create a piece of high level art all the while knowing she was lacking. She seems like a pleasant lady though.

art is subjective in my opinion she did a good job

TERRIBLE! Beyond AWFUL!

I THINK SHE'S A REALLY "GOOD"ARTIST!!!

This was a different wrinkle and much needed to sell the artist.

It has been interesting to follow Morags works over this and the previous series. She is obviously a very talented and sensitive artist who has a unique way of working. She was mainly picked as the winner because of the portrait of her boyfriend, which was lovely. However I think this might not have been the best outcome for her, winning the competetion and being commissioned to. do such a major portrait. She is a very shy and sensitive woman and I think she can thrive best when she feels comfortable in the surroundings and with the people she works with. This is visible in her best works. But winning the competetion put so much spotlight of her that it must have been very uncomfortable for her (and for the viewer I would say).
Her unease with the sitter was clear, as well as the pressure of having to perform under these circumstances. It just did not suit her, even if I think some comments here are very harsh and unfair. She did produce the work in her style, but it is rather weak compared to other pieces she has done. As she works with so much with space and bare lines, the composition and every color has to be spot on, but this work seems to lack in these areas. The placements of the figure on the canvas felt arbitrary, as well as some choices she made regarding details. It is a real shame as I think she has much potential.

How unfortunate a portrait. Absolutely terrible. No likeness at all, very sloppy. The sitter was so lovely a man and she completely disrespected him.

I love this piece and the artist. For me, it was just right.

You're all smoking crack in the comments.

Gentlemen, when do they broadcast season 10, 2023.

Wonderful capture of the " feel" of him. That's what I want when I look at a portrait, not just the technique or composition. Not easy to do. Great work.

I feel transported to my fellow countryman Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale " The emperor's new clothes", when the judges talks about this painting. That portrait could be of any black person - it looks more like Idris Elba than Lenny Henry. Its a great painting but not a great portrait 🥺

Seems like the only artist who bothered to pull something profound and arousing out of their subject was Christian Hook in his portrait of Scottish actor, Alan Cumming. Now there’s a brilliant portrait artist.

It captured what he hoped it would. Very much enjoyed this! Thank-you...