Oxfordshire artists to deliver masterclass on Sky TV show

Tom Croft, who was awarded a BEM in 2021 for his work on the Portraits for NHS Heroes project, will present a masterclass on exaggerating colour on Sky Artist of the Year on Thursday, March 6.

Mr Croft, whose previous masterclass on self-portraiture aired on February 25, said: “It was both hugely flattering and absolutely terrifying being asked to present these two episodes of Sky Artist of the Year Masterclass.

Tom Croft on the set of Sky Artist of the Year (Image: Oxfordshire Artweeks) A self-portrait by Tom Croft (Image: Oxfordshire Artweeks) “The series is a wonderful concept for a TV show blissfully free of competition, where fabulous artists demonstrate how they produce their works while explaining their process.

“It usually takes me weeks to produce my portraits so this was a good challenge to try and paint an oil sketch in a few hours.

“It forced me to summarise my marks and edit down decisions as I went.

Tom Croft on the set of Sky Artist of the Year (Image: Oxfordshire Artweeks) “During the process, I explained the thought process behind producing a portrait which will hopefully be of interest to the viewers and give them a few tips to try as well in their own works.”

Me Croft will be opening his Wolvercote studio for the first week of the Oxfordshire Artweeks festival, from May 3 to 11.

Oxfordshire Artweeks is the UK’s oldest and biggest open studios and pop-up exhibition event.