Welcome to the August/September issue! I hope everyone has been enjoying their summer so far (and if you’re in the southern hemisphere, I hope it’s been a brisk and refreshing winter). This is the time of year where everyone seems to be spending time outside, traveling and plein air painting. The desire to get out there and create something is infectious.

This past May, I headed to Washington, D.C., for the Portrait Society of America’s 27th annual Art of the Portrait Conference, and let me say, it was an incredible event. I had the priviledge of meeting with dozens of amazing individuals, all with a shared passion for art. The friendship and camaraderie is unmatched, not to mention the sheer volume of insightful workshops and demonstrations taking place throughout the weekend. If you ever get the chance to attend, I highly recommend it. Whether you’re a portrait/figurative artist or not, it truly is a valuable experience for all artists. We have 12 pages of comprehensive coverage of the conference, including the 2025 International Portrait Competition winners. Read it all starting on page 20. 

Throughout the rest of this issue, readers can dive into some excellent demonstrations in oil, acrylic, pastel and watercolor. I’m especially excited to point you toward watercolorists Ian de Hoog from Canada and Daria Antonova from Russia, who are each doing great work with the medium—de Hoog creates vivid avian art, and Antonova paints lively city scenes. And on the cover of this issue is a stunning watercolor painting of a waterfront facade in Treviso, Italy, by our own John Lovett! Elsewhere in the magazine, you’ll find a special feature on Bennett Prize winner Amy Werntz, as well as a sculpture focus in our Beyond the Palette column, wisdom from our resident pastelist Harley Brown and much more. 

Warmly,
Alyssa M. Tidwell
Editor
atidwell@internationalartist.com