As we step into the new year, I’m delighted to share our annual Spotlight on Artists – a key highlight in the New Blood Art calendar. This extended blog post celebrates the outstanding achievements of our artists over the past 12 months and features those with exciting developments ahead, which are often strong indicators of significant investment potential.
At New Blood Art, we have a track record of identifying artists before their work sees dramatic increases in value (read more here). However, investing in art is about more than potential financial return – it’s an ethical, soulful investment. When you buy, you’re supporting the career of a talented artist and gaining something deeply meaningful, with rewards that go beyond the monetary.
This year, we’ve made it easy to explore these exceptional artists. You can:
• Read the full blog post here for a comprehensive overview of their achievements and upcoming milestones.
• Watch the video for the quickest way to engage with this information. Every image included in the video is available for sale, and additional works by these artists can be found on our website.
Lilian Evans – Lilian had her first solo show in July this year – A Place In My Heart at the Pipe Factory, Glasgow, Scotland in collaboration with curator Aliya Prichard-Casey. She also has another solo show – The Lover – in February 2025 at Beacon Arts, Greenock, Scotland. Plus an exhibition collaboration with Aliya Prichard-Casey at French Street, Glasgow, Scotland in March titled I DARE YOU TO LOVE ME.
Hannah Absalom – Hannah graduated from Central Saint Martins with a 1:1 Masters of Fine Art and was also awarded the Cass Art Graduate Prize.
Katherine Benson – Katherine had work selected for a new gallery opening show at ArtPistol Gallery in Glasgow.
Sammi Mak – Sammi had a busy year with work featured in multiple group shows, including: Elephant In The Hat, Artbridger at Soho House, Hong Kong; [Solo] The Dream Has Me, Swanfall Art, London, UK; Clifford Chance Hong Kong Arcus Pride Art 2024, Hong Kong; AIA collection exhibition, Hong Kong; Launch exhibition of Artbridger, Hong Kong; Art Central 2024, presented by Odds and Ends Gallery, Hong Kong. Sammi was also interviewed for the following publications: [Magazine Artist Interview] Hong Kong Economic Journal, Hong Kong (July 2024); [Online Article] 新潮流 M+, China (March 2024); [Online Article] Etnet Hong Kong (March 2024); [Video interview] Ztylez Hong Kong (March 2024).
Mary West – Mary started off 2024 with an exhibition at The Saatchi Gallery with the Delphian Gallery group show The Way Of All Flesh. In March Mary exhibited at Cromwell Place in a group show curated by Laura Lopes and Davina Barber, plus had work included in the group show A Room of One’s Own at Irving Contemporary in Oxford. In May, Mary had 4 works selected for Blue Shop Galleries Works On Paper 6 and was also included in a group show ‘Sonder’ with Purslane Art in December, plus a works on paper show at Sir John Soane’s Pitzhanger Manor. A painting was featured in the December issue of Architectural Digest having been commissioned by the interior designer Beata Heuman for a Grade II listed townhouse in Kensington. Mary will be having a solo show in March 2025 with Lucinda Dalton Gallery in Notting Hill and has also been commissioned to make two of her largest works to date for an exciting project in Mayfair.
Rosemary Burn – Rosemary completed two portraits of the iconic fashion designer Zandra Rhodes from sittings in her flat in Bermondsey London. These are now included in her private collection. She was also longlisted for the Women in Art Emerging Art Prize 2024 and had work shown (and sold) in the Natural Eye, SWLA Exhibition, Mall Galleries London. The sold painting was bought by prominent art dealer Robin Hurlstone, who commissioned a further artwork. Both artworks are now in his private collection. Rosemary also had work included at the RSMA, Mall Galleries London, plus had paintings acquired by Laura Gonzalez, notable interior designer, who bought 3 artworks for a project she was working on – a chic new restaurant in Paris. Rosemary was also commissioned to paint the Instagram sensation ‘Sophie from Romania’, the BBC presenter Rory Cellan Jones’ rescue dog, which raised £2505 for ‘Cure Parkinson’s’.
Rachel McDonnell – Rachel had a solo show at Cupola Gallery, Sheffield and was shortlisted for the BEEP painting prize, Swansea. She was also co-lead artist on a big publicly funded project, Growing Places, as part of artist collective Walking the Land.
Paul Butterworth – Paul had two paintings selected for The Graduate Art Show at the Vanner Gallery in Salisbury, which is billed as the best art graduates of 2024 from 38 art schools. He was also long-listed for the Beep Painting Biennial, as well as graduating from the University for the Creative Arts with a 2:1 Painting in July.
Drea Cohane – Drea participated in the RWS OPEN as part of their group exhibit at Bankside and was awarded The Shoosmith Gallery Prize for her piece The Dancer. She was shortlisted for the Jackson’s Art Prize, and exhibited in their group exhibit at Bankside in July. In 2025, Drea will be working on a 20+ piece commission for Legends of Ballet, which is a UK organization that looks to promote the legacy of the Ballet Russes.
Maryna Shkoliar – Maryna currently has her painting ‘First Snow’ included in an all-Ukrainian exhibition at Central House of Artists of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine in Kyiv.
Tia Taylor Berry – Tia completed a 4 week residency in Alvik, Norway (January 2024) and in February started a 12 month fellowship as the Freelands Studio Fellow at Grays School of Art, Aberdeen, where she has been teaching whilst also maintaining a studio practice and creating her artist Tarot deck. In 2025, Tia will open her solo show in Aberdeen in partnership with the Freelands Foundation (13th January 2025, this is also the official release date of her Tarot deck). She has work included in a group exhibition at The Freelands Foundation in London (March 2025), plus has been awarded a fully funded Vermont studio center fellowship, in Vermont, New Hampshire, USA (To begin March 2025).
Octavia Madden – After graduating, Octavia accepted an offer of a subsidised place on the Royal Drawing School’s intensive drawing term. She then returned to Devon to work on a collaborative project with two other Aberystwyth graduates, Toby Wills Hart and Millicent Evans which culminated in curating and exhibiting work in ‘Between Forests’ at the Garage Gallery, London. Octavia then participated in a group show with other Royal Drawing School students in ‘This is Earthly Stuff’ at the Amp Gallery, London, as well as taking part in Dulwich Open Studios and Devon Open Studios. Octavia was awarded the Emerging Artist Bursary and the Joanna Radford Prize, plus had her Open Studio featured in Devon Life, Evolver Magazine and a number of local news outlets. In 2025, she has been invited to exhibit at Garage Gallery, invited to submit works for the Atkinson Gallery and has also been selected for the Hafod residency.
Felicity Talman – Felicity participated in the Pastel Society 125th Annual Exhibition at the Mall Galleries in January/February 2024. In November, she was awarded the Artist Support Pledge Scholarship by Contemporary Art Academy to participate in their Personal Practice course with Matthew Collins. Felicity had two pieces of work accepted into the Pastel Society 126th Annual Exhibition, which opens on the 22nd of January 2025 at the Mall Galleries, London.
Emiko Aida – Emiko had work included in a group of Royal Society of Painters & Printmakers at The Bevere Gallery in Worcester in June and July 2024 alongside regular shows at Bankside Gallery in London. She will have work on show at The Burton at Bideford Art Gallery and Museum in Devon in January and February 2025.
Toni Harrower – Toni had two paintings included in the Visual Arts Scotland centenary exhibition titled Then & Now at the Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh. Plus two paintings included in the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition.
Canaan Brown – Canaan was nominated for the New Blood Art Emerging Artist Prize and was a recipient of the Sir John Akomfrah Fellowship Award, as well as a grant and the opportunity to showcase work in the duo show Resilience, hosted by The Collective Makers. He exhibited in Phase 2’s group show We’ve Been Here, plus Reframe: The Director’s Cut and was resident artist with Reframe at the Southbank Centre. He also exhibited at Tate Modern Lates: Sonic Disruption.
Blake Milteer – Blake has an upcoming solo show at Gairloch Museum in Ross-shire, Scotland, opening in March 2025.
Orlanda Broom – Orlanda was shortlisted for the Main Prize in the inaugural Cass Art Prize, Copeland Gallery in Nov 2024, plus has work selected for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. Next year, Orlanda has a painting in Saatchi’s Flower show, opening in February.
Rosie Nicholson – Rosie had a solo show – Melt , Peel, Pour, plus completed a residency in bath Somerset.
Margaret Ashman – Margaret has work selected for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, the Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair curated hang and was shortlisted for the Flourish Award for Excellence in Contemporary Printmaking.
John Heywood-Waddington – John completed his first art residency at Nocefresca in Sardinia. He’s also had a number of paintings selected by Collectum, a New York-based art consultancy, who will also be showing his artwork at the AVA hotel and gallery in Cancun in 2025. John had artwork selected for the AKA Winter Exhibition, the Pastel Society annual exhibition in the Mall Galleries, the Green & Stone Gallery Winter Show and the Hampstead Art Society online works on paper. In 2025, he will be exhibiting as part of a collective called Dreamscapes with four other artists at XYZ gallery space, in Chancery Lane.
Stephen Todd – Stephen was selected for biannual Harley Open at the Harley Gallery, Welbeck. Plus short-listed for Royal Academy Summer Show and New English Art Club Annual Exhibition.
Remi Jablecki – Remi exhibitied at Royal Scottish Academy New Contemporaries 2024 and received the RSA Carnegie Scholarship for Painting during the exhibition. He also received the RSA John Kinross Scholarship to study painting, sculpture and architecture in Italy during 2024 with selection of works added to the RSA Permanent Collection. Remi also had paintings selected for the set of ITV series production to be released in 2025 and was shortlisted for Global Graduate Show 2024. He also graduated with Distinction in MA Contemporary Art Practice from Edinburgh College of Art.
Sara Christova – Sara won the Fine Art: Installation/Sculpture category of ARTS THREAD’s Global Creative Graduate Showcase 2024 with her graduate project ‘Locus Solus’. She will shortly be traveling to Beijing to complete a two-month residency at Dulwich College Beijing as a guest tutor while completing a new body of works to be exhibited in a solo show at the end of the residency in February/March.
Natalie Chapman – Natalie had her work featured in an article by the BBC, which has led to a major solo show in 2026 at Cyfartha Castle. She has recently sold an original painting to Jayde Adams, the comedienne who starred in Alma’s Not Normal and was interviewed on The Arts Show for BBC Wales about the working class and the arts.
Arlene Sharp – Arlene’s work was included in ‘Curious Space: Transitions in Landscape’, a group show at Willesden Gallery, London.
Wayne Sleeth – Wayne was ‘Invité d’honneur’ at two Salons des Arts in France, at Dieulouard and Dieuze, receiving a ‘Médaille de la Ville’ from the latter. He also had three artworks entered into public collections in France. Wayne has completed a 12-month personal project, which followed the 500 km of the Moselle river in the footsteps of JMW Turner in 1824. He has created hundreds of artworks to date, with a book – Mosel(le) – underway for 2025.
Jan Valik – Jan had solo exhibition titled ‘Levity’ at Chamber in Vienna, Austria (24 September – 21 November) and also graduated from Royal College of Art in London, during which he was awarded Rose Finn-Kelcey Bursary and The Vice Chancellor’s Achievement Scholarship. His group exhibitions include: tNoHo Gallery, titled ‘Hazy Horizons’, London, Norito Gallery, titled ‘Moving Stones Gather No Moss’, London, L.L. Contemporary, titled ‘Both: Inwards and Out There’, Toronto, Canada, Galerie Amart, titled ‘Abstract on Paper’, Vienna, Austria. Jan is currently Studio West Artist in Residence in Wimbledon, London (until March 2025). He has upcoming solo exhibitions at Megafield Gallery in Beijing, China and Galerie Amart in Vienna, Austria . His work was also acquired to the important collection of contemporary art Andrea and Manuela Bille from the RCA 2024 Show.
Jai James – Jai will be participating in a group exhibition in January that he has organised alongside fellow Glasgow School of Art Masters graduates, David Hicks, Frankie Brown and Emily Chung.
