Painter From Shiraz Wins Winsor and Newton Prize

Maryam Najafi from Shiraz has won the prize of the 2017 Self-Portrait Contest organized by Winsor and Newton, a company producing artists’ paint with headquarters in London.

Najafi, 32, is a national winner from Iran. Each national winner receives $500 worth from the UK company in the form of oil, acrylic and water color products. In the next phase of the contest, she will enter an international competition whereby eligible national artists will be assessed and the winner will be entitled to a three-day free trip to London.

Najafi submitted her painting last fall. It is a 35cmx45cm oil-on-canvas realist work showing a profile of a young girl with a raven perching on her head. Her dress has the same floral designs of the wall tiles in the background. The painting is titled ‘Flower and Bird,’ Honaronline reported. Najafi has held four solo exhibitions so far.

Jury members of the competition’s national phase included figurative painter Masoumeh Mozaffari, 59;  painter and instructor Behrang Samadzadegan, 38; and painter and photographer Maryam Khansari.