LAOTY Bristol Harbourside 13th June 2024

Published by Richard Doyle,


Are you a professional artist?
That was the question from the executive producer of Landscape Artist of the Year as she walked by with her mother in tow checking out the wildcard artists at work. Such an amazing day! Despite the rain showers in the afternoon, I felt energised by the buzz of positive comments from passers-by and excited to think that even my contribution was in contention to win the wildcard competition. All of us wildcard artists showed grit and determination to continue in the conditions with raincoats, umbrellas and scarves or jumpers. We were happy for the experience of being part of the show, despite the waiting and the need to retake shots for the cameras.

Wildcards are go!
After filming the wildcard walk up the harbourside (twice) we had to wait 45 mins until 10 o'clock when the wildcard competition would start. Having arrived at 7.20am, I had hoped we would get started earlier to avoid the showers which were forecast to start from lunchtime onwards. This gave me time to look at the pods as they were being set up and find the portaloos at the end of the harbourside. Just before ten, the announcement came for us to begin and we walked down to find our spots. When I was setting up, my water bottle smashed and broke but that simply spurred me on. All morning, I had had the feeling that something bad was bound to happen, and this lifted the curse. From that point onwards, I felt calm and motivated. Even the rain did not dampen my spirit. My practice sessions helped as I knew how to work quickly and effectively from a photograph using my chosen artistic style of mixing coloured pencils with Chinese inks. We were fortunate to get two hours of dry weather before the rain began and I was happy that I had got enough down to justify taking a short lunch break. I packed my canvas board and left it in the care of another wildcard before going to the pub for a pint and burger. When I returned after 20 mins, I had to attach an umbrella to my easel with sellotape to continue working in the constant showers. There was also the perpetual danger of the wind lifting the easel off the ground which tested my quick reactions. After that, I simply added more colour layers with my pencils to bring out the best contrast.

Where is Stephen Mangan?
When Stephen appeared on the scene in the morning, we knew that the day had begun. Throughout the day, the three judges Tai, Kathleen & Kathy toured where we were painting, straggled along in a narrow corridor beside a public path facing the harbourside view. As the time approached for the end of the wildcard competition, they announced that Kate would be filmed walking through and choosing the winner. She filed past behind us right down to the end. I didn't follow as I was holding on to my easel to stop it blowing away in the wind! I can watch it on the programme in Jan 2025.

Would I do it again?
Yes, yes and yes. I keep on looking at my painting, saying Did I really paint that in only four hours?. The wildcard competition has spurred me on to continue my artistic efforts. This has certainly given me the confidence to apply again. My thanks to Alici, Melissa and all the production crew and operators for being so professional and welcoming. Now I have to wait until I see the programme on Sky Arts.