An artist will compete in the final of Sky Landscape Artist of the Year – after his painting of Leigh earned him a spot in the competition.

Paul Alcock breezed through his semi-final in October and will compete in the final to be broadcast on November 27.

Paul earned his spot in the competition alongside 48 other artists with his submitted piece “Osbornes in Winter Old Leigh”.

During the semi-final, Paul was one of eight contestants alongside 50 wild cards with the show filmed at Viking Bay in Broadstairs, Kent.

Each contestant had four hours to produce artwork based on the location.

He said: “I’ve been a wild card on a couple of occasions, so I was really thrilled this time to be able to take part as one of the main contestants.

“I think we were all feeling nervous at the start of the day and no one seemed to have got much sleep the night before.

“Once I got started with my painting though the nerves melted away.

“It was a fascinating experience being on the inside and seeing how the program is produced. I enjoyed the whole experience of meeting and chatting with the judges, presenters and crew.”

Paul is a professional artist and tutor who makes his living from teaching adults and through sales of his work.

He has exhibited his work with the Leigh Art Trail for the last nine years and had also had exhibitions at Miss Annabel Dee Gallery in Leigh, Picturesque Gallery in Billericay and the Beecroft Gallery in Southend.

Paul is currently working towards a large exhibition of urban, coastal and landscape scenes which will be held at the Beecroft Gallery in 2020.

The environment around Southend plus a few trips further afield have provided the main inspiration for Paul’s impressionistic paintings over the last few years.

Paul paints throughout the year, working from direct observation whenever possible and he can often to be seen painting and sketching on location throughout seasons.

He said: “I remember getting a real buzz from working out doors during my college years, I’ve always kept sketchbooks and recorded the world around me when I’ve had a few minutes to spare.

“About eight years ago I decided to start painting outdoors too which I hadn’t done since my college days.

“At first I was a bit nervous about setting up my easel in public but I soon became enthralled working in this way and now I love the experience of working from a life.

“Working from life I get the chance to produce an image distilled from the process of looking over a period of time and including some of the changes that I’ve observed whilst working. “ The work of all the semi-finalists will go on exhibition at the Clarenden Gallery in Mayfair.