Scots in the frame at prestigious exhibition

It might be the age of the selfie, but the ancient art of portrait painting will never go out of fashion, according to Richard Foster.

The president of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters believes brush strokes on canvas can still bring subjects to life like nothing else.

He said: “It’s partly because other people are fascinating, and people are fascinated by themselves. They like being painted.

“It’s partly status, but it’s also very worthy. I used to paint my children when they were young and they hated it – they used to curse and swear.

“When my daughter had her children, the first thing she asked me was to paint their portrait.

“It’s the right sort of pride, and it’s very touching. Some say it’s rather pompous or self-centred to have a portrait, but I don’t think that’s true at all. People are grateful.

“It’s the good side of pride to have a portrait. It will never die as a genre – the styles change but it will never die out.”

Richard was speaking ahead of the Royal Society’s annual exhibition in London, and there are plenty of Scots among the artists and their subjects.

“There’s a long history of Scottish artists – from David Donaldson to Alexander Goudie – who used to send portraits down to us,” he explained.

“In recent years it died away so we thought it would be an idea to have more Scots.”

Among the Scottish artists included are Mark Roscoe from Fife, and Kathryn Kynoch and Graeme Wilson from Glasgow.

Some of the sitters include Scots like Lord Beith, Rory Stewart MP and Dame Elish Angiolini.