A GLASGOW-based artist who discovered he was TV star Graham Norton’s cousin when he won a £10,000 commission to paint a portrait of him is to unveil a new exhibition in Scotland.
Gareth Reid, 54, the current Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year will present his solo exhibition Portrait Drawings, at The Art Space, at Cass Art Glasgow, its flagship store in Scotland, The artist, who was born in Belfast will be showcasing his preparatory sketches for the competition and will include his sketches of Norton.
Norton featured in the Who Do You Think You Are? programme and discovered his great-grandfather, James Reynolds, and Gareth’s great-grandmother, Christina Reynolds, were siblings from a family of more than 10 and hailed from Ballymena.
The works exhibited in Portrait Drawings were all made during the sitters’ two-hour visits to his studio and, for the most part, as preparatory sketches for the Sky competition and will include his sketches of presenter Norton.
The teacher at Strathclyde University beat 54 international hopefuls to be crowned winner of the show on Thursday arch 14) and won the commission to paint a portrait of GrahamNorton for a display at the National Gallery of Ireland.
Reid fans can join him for a weekly Life Drawing class every Thursday, where he will be on-hand to give his advice for capturing the figure. He studied at Glasgow School of Art and now lives in the city where he teaches at the Centre for Lifelong Learning at Strathclyde University.
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