A portrait painted by a former Grove School pupil is going to be seen by thousands of London commuters after it was chosen as the promotional image for the BP Portrait awards.
Artist Mary Jane Ansell’s painting, titled Georgie, has been chosen from thousands of entries from across the world to be placed at tube stations and other famous London landmarks.
The picture is being used to advertise the BP Portrait awards which starts on Thursday at the National Portrait Gallery.
Mary Jane, who now lives in Brighton, but comes back to Market Drayton regularly to visit her family, said she was “very excited” her painting had been chosen.
She said: “The portrait awards is a very popular exhibition which has a massive attendance so it’s very exciting that my painting has been chosen as the promotional image.
“It is going to be placed at many of the tube stations in London and it is also going to be put on a banner which is going to be drapped across the National Portrait Gallery.
“There are initially around 50,000 entries into the competition from all around the world, that list then gets whittled down to 2000 before eventually being cut to 50, so for my painting to be chosen is very pleasing.”
Mary Jane said it was at the Grove where her talent for art first began to flourish and praised the school for helping her develop a career as an artist.
She said: “My overriding memory of my time at the Grove is always being late, despite the fact that I only lived just around the corner. I had some great teachers, Mr Brawn was one I remember well and there were a few others who were excellent too.
“It is over 20 years since I was a pupil there now but I really enjoyed it.”