Work by a local artist, Mark Fielding has been selected from nearly 2,000 entries to appear alongside paintings by some of Britain’s leading portrait artists. The Royal Society of Portrait Painters hold an annual open submission exhibition in central London each year.

Graced by portraits of royalty, celebrities, academics, mothers, daughters, fathers and sons, the exhibition is a feature of the social calendar.

This year about half of the work will be by eminent Members of the Society and half by emerging artists selected through the open submission.

With some 200 portraits on show this is the largest and most comprehensive exhibition of recent portraits in the country.

This year’s exhibition will be on display at Mall Galleries, central London, between 4 to 19 May 2017.

The Royal Society of Portrait Painters have many prizes and awards available to exhibitors, including the £10,000 Ondaatje Prize for Portraiture and the £3,000 de Laszlo Foundation Award.

Mark's studio gallery is situated in Factory Cooperage at Royal William Yard, just past the red telephone box. The gallery displays a wide range of paintings, limited edition prints and greetings cards. There's an eclectic mix of vibrant tango dancers and bright fishing boats from Cornwall to the Mediterranean and much more to explore. You can also commission Mark to paint a portrait (he was a student of Robert Lenkiewicz). As a working studio, Mark can usually be found painting in the studio gallery.

Website: http://www.markfielding.co.uk

Listings

Royal Society of Portrait Painters Annual Exhibition

Mall Galleries, The Mall, London SW1

www.mallgalleries.org.uk

Open 4 to 19 May, 10am to 5pm. Open until 7pm on Tuesdays.

Admission £4, Concessions £2.50 (Free to Friends of Mall Galleries and Under 18s).