Interview: Hesketh Hubbard Bursary Recipients 2025

Paul Majek (b. 2000) is based in London and received his BFA in Fine Art from the University of Oxford, Ruskin School of Art in 2023. He completed his postgraduate at the Royal Drawing School in 2024. Majek’s work is about ancestral shadow figures in liminal spaces before this time and in the present moment. Staining and drawing on wood allows for a repetitive layering, rendering the surface soft and easy to enter. 

How has free access to weekly life drawing sessions helped to develop your work?

It has been such a privilege to have free weekly access to life drawing sessions. It’s allowed me to maintain my practice of drawing from life, something I’ve always been drawn to in my work. I completed the Drawing Year before I was awarded the Hesketh Hubbard Bursary, so I’m incredibly grateful that I’ve been able to keep up with life drawing as much as I did when I was on the course. Working in such a devoted and focused space with other artists has been such a pleasure and has really pushed my drawing and observation skills to new levels. The structure of attending every week has been amazing for improving my technique, and it’s also become a lovely, mindful practice that’s helped me stay grounded in both my work and my life. I’ll definitely miss the sessions when they’re over!

What impact has the opportunity to work alongside a community of artists, who form the Hesketh Hubbard Art Society, had on your creative practice?

The opportunity to work alongside a community of artists was truly inspiring. I learned so much more about drawing from life by looking at everyone’s diverse approaches to drawing and making. It was always exciting to see some artists bring other materials, like oil paint, into the space and create beautiful paintings! Having consistent life drawing sessions with the models has been so impactful for my practice, it allowed me to explore the human form and body in new and interesting ways. My recent works have been exploring the body in abstract terms, particularly what it means to be in a body and to be observed. Drawing from life models has been really useful for incorporating these ideas into the worlds I’ve been building in my personal practice. Luckily, I now have enough drawings from the sessions to keep inspiring me for a long time!

Can you provide any advice regarding the application process to encourage other young artists to apply?

My advice for future applicants would be to make sure the four examples of your work truly represent you, your practice, and your drawing ability. You’ll also have the chance to express this clearly in your artist statement, be upfront about your relationship to drawing, especially life drawing, and how it influences your work. I also think it’s important to show this connection in your physical portfolio, so don’t be afraid to bring as much work as you’d like to share during the interview. Most importantly, believe in yourself and your work. I wish you all the best of luck!

Chloe Barnes creates figurative monotypes that explore identity, sexuality, the psyche, and the experiences of women, including her own. Barnes' work reinterprets outward appearances through expressive mark-making, encouraging viewers to see themselves in the subjects and find resonance in the familiar and the reimagined.

How has free access to weekly life drawing sessions helped to develop your work?

Having access to sitters has allowed me to see the effect that painting from life has on my visual language. It's allowed me to build a greater understanding of form and the importance of connection with the figure in front of me, leading to emotional mark-making and expression, and helping me prepare for my time on Sky Portrait Artist of the Year 2025!

The regular sessions have provided me the space to experiment with different mediums, particularly bringing in printmaking processes. From etchings, monotypes, charcoal drawings and gouache paintings, I have the freedom to play, which was something I wasn't able to do since university. 
 

What impact has the opportunity to work alongside a community of artists, who form the Hesketh Hubbard Art Society, had on your creative practice?

When I graduated in 2023 and relocated to London, I was missing out on a network and creative community. Joining Hesketh Hubbard has been inspiring; artists work across different mediums but it's been interesting to see how each person captures the figure through their visual language.

As I normally paint alone in my studio, I've really enjoyed coming to Mall Galleries. I'm consistently met with warmth and encouragement, and it's been positive to talk and work alongside professional artists as I navigate the next stages of my career.

Can you provide any advice regarding the application process to encourage other young artists to apply?

Life drawing is so much more than an exercise in drawing figures. It is an opportunity to play and also see how working from life can impact your practice and the way you approach your image-making and depiction of the person in front of you! If you're thinking of applying, think how you can use the year to experiment and push yourself outside of conventional drawing. 
 

Zoë Wilkinson (b. 1999) is a British-Caribbean artist. Born and raised in the UK, Wilkinson’s practice endeavours to create an imagined homeland between Guyana and Britain. Using family photographs, autofiction and tropical greenhouses, she makes her world tangible through charcoal and paint.

How has free access to weekly life drawing sessions helped to develop your work?

Access to free life drawing sessions has meant that I have a more intuitive grasp of the human figure. Before I started attending the classes, I approached the human subjects in my work with the caution that comes with working solely from photographs. Now, with the confidence and appreciation for the human form that I have gained during regular life drawing, I am able to construct figures more freely. I can be more playful with the charcoal when drawing people because of my new understanding of light and shadow. Even when working from a photographic reference, I feel I can imbue my subject with a sense of humanness because I have had the opportunity to develop my drawing skills by working from life models. As well as developing my work, the life drawing sessions have made me love drawing the human figure even more because my marks have become more energetic and instinctive. 
 

What impact has the opportunity to work alongside a community of artists, who form the Hesketh Hubbard Art Society, had on your creative practice?

One of the highlights of my year at Hesketh Hubbard was being able to share the joy of drawing with other people. Every week there is inspiration all around, from conversations with other artists during the tea breaks to the ever-changing works displayed at the Mall Galleries. Being a part of a large community of life drawers has helped shape the way I approach drawing myself. One of the most important parts of drawing is observation. The chance to see how other people are responding to the same subject has helped my own understanding of drawing grow to one that became more confident and instinctive.

Can you provide any advice regarding the application process to encourage other young artists to apply?

My advice for young artists is firstly to apply! When I applied, I thought I wouldn’t get the opportunity because of all the other amazing artists I was competing with but I did an application anyway because I was so desperate to have access to life drawing. I am incredibly grateful to be able to draw every week at Hesketh Hubbard and it has really shaped my current practice. If you are applying this year my advice would be to consider how regular life drawing could shape your practice and make that clear in your application. I felt that my application was strengthened by my explanation of why the human figure was so important to my practice so it may be helpful to explain to the selectors why you would like to improve your skills in life drawing specifically. Good luck!