Portrait of Britain

Photography competition

Portrait of Britain is an annual British portrait photography award run by the British Journal of Photography.[1][2] Its subject is the diversity of British people.[3] The 100 winning portraits are displayed on JCDecaux's digital screens across Britain throughout the month of January.[4] It launched in 2016.[4]

Since 2018, an eponymously titled book has been published with 200 of the shortlisted portraits from each year.

## Details

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One of the winning portraits from the 2023 competition

The competition's subject is the diversity of British people[3] "and the way their narratives reflect its widely unstable political and social landscape."[5] It was partly inspired by Brexit.[4][6]

It is open to anyone to enter but photographs must have been taken within the previous six years and "depict subjects living in the UK (England, Scotland, Wales & Northern Ireland) at the time of the photograph."[7]

The 100 winning portraits are displayed on the outdoor advertising company JCDecaux's digital screens located in railway stations, shopping centres, bus stops and high streets.[4][3] Each image appears on each screen for five to ten seconds.[4]

The competition ran in September 2016,[8] September 2017[5][9][10] September 2018,[11][12][13][14] December 2021[15] September 2022,[16] 2023,[17] and 2024[18][19] with winners announced the following year.

## Publications

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* Portrait of Britain. London: Hoxton Mini Press, 2018. ISBN 978-1-910566-38-1. With an introduced by Will Self. Work by 200 photographers alongside information about each image and selected quotes from the photographers.
* Portrait of Britain: Vol 2. London: Hoxton Mini Press, 2019. ISBN 978-1-910566-54-1. With an introduction by Ekow Eshun.
* Portrait of Britain: Vol 3. London: Hoxton Mini Press, 2020. ISBN 978-1-910566-77-0. With an introduction by David Olusoga.
* Portrait of Britain: Vol 4. London: Hoxton Mini Press, 2022. ISBN 978-1-914314-13-1. With an introduction by Jess Phillips.
* Portrait of Britain: Vol 5. London: Hoxton Mini Press, 2023. With an introduction by Rachel Segal Hamilton.
* Portrait of Britain: Vol 6. London: Bluecoat, 2024. With an introduction by Simon Bainbridge.
* Portrait of Britain: Vol 7. London: Bluecoat, 2025. With an introduction by Diane Smyth.

## References

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1. ^ "'Portraits of Britain' is coming to rail stations and shopping centres". Time Out London. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
2. ^ "These Beautiful Pictures Aim To Paint A Portrait Of Britain". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
3. ^ a b c Driscoll, Brogan (6 September 2016). "Adverts Replaced By Stunning Photo Exhibition To Reflect Diversity Of British Public". HuffPost UK. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
4. ^ a b c d e Genova, Alexandra. "100 Portraits Take Over Britain's Ad Screens". Time. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
5. ^ a b Manatakis, Lexi (31 August 2017). "Portraits that reflect the changing face of Britain". Dazed. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
6. ^ "Portraits that reveal the changing face of Britain". Huck Magazine. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
7. ^ "Rules". Portrait of Britain. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
8. ^ "New portraits that reflect the changing face of Britain". Dazed. 2 September 2016. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
9. ^ "Displaying Britain's diversity". BBC News. 6 September 2017. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
10. ^ "Survivors, celebrities and a septuagenarian surfer: Portrait of Britain – in pictures". The Guardian. 3 September 2017. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
11. ^ "A nanny, a rabbi, a puppy and a parrot: portraits of Britain today - in pictures". The Guardian. 30 August 2018. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
12. ^ "'Portrait of Britain' photography competition highlights diversity of nation". The Independent. Retrieved 2018-09-05.
13. ^ "Portrait of Britain winners capture the diversity and beauty of the public". Metro. 30 August 2018. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
14. ^ "Portraits celebrate Britain's diversity in 2018". BBC News. 30 August 2018. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
15. ^ "Portrait of Britain 2021 winners – in pictures". The Guardian. 15 December 2021. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
16. ^ Ruffatti, Isabella (9 January 2023). "BJP announces the Portrait of Britain Vol.5 winners". Amateur Photographer. Retrieved 2023-01-09.
17. ^ ""The quirky, the mundane": Portrait of Britain selects some of its best winners yet". www.itsnicethat.com. Retrieved 2025-02-05.
18. ^ Stone, Mee-Lai (2025-01-07). "Fight for the spotlight! Portrait of Britain winners – in pictures". the Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2025-02-05.
19. ^ Carter, Kalum (2025-01-06). "British Journal of Photography reveals the 100 winners of Portrait of Britain Vol.7". digitalcameraworld. Retrieved 2025-02-05.

## External links

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* Official website