MOFFAT artist Sam Dalby has won the new Sutherland Independent Scottish Portrait Award in Fine Art.
Sam was named the winner of the of Scotland’s biggest prize for portraiture this week, winning £5000 with his painting ‘Meeting Daniel’, a posthumous portrait of the artist’s mother meeting her grandson Daniel for the first time.
On learning of the award, not having won a prize in his career before, Sam said: “I did not expect this small tribute to my late mother would ever win such an accolade. I was just trying to encapsulate my love for her in paint, as I certainly can’t do that in words.
“The fact that others feel that this painting has done this successfully, makes me feel a glow of pride that I have seldom felt in my career. My heartfelt thanks go to the Scottish Arts Trust for this award.”
Sam has been painting portraits since 1999 and was elected as a member of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters in 2013.
He hoped that his posthumous portrait of his mother, meeting her grandson Daniel for the first time would highlight her loving and caring personality and he added: “She was a devoted mother to her eight children, and cared deeply for all children. I hope this portrait encapsulates the love that she felt and demonstrated so generously.”
Sam’s portrait along with the other winning portraits from this year’s Scottish Portrait Awards will travel across Scotland as part of the its exhibition. The exhibition launches at the Scottish Arts Club, Edinburgh from September 10 to October 1 2022.
