How I see myself

24 October—18 November 2009

In the Gallery Café

Work by Maya Andrews An exciting exhibition showcasing the winners of this year's Junior Painter of the Year competition.

The Junior Painter of the Year Awards is an annual competition, run by disability charity Sightsavers International. Sightsavers works in over 30 countries throughout Africa, Asia and the Caribbean to prevent and cure blindness and support those who are blind through rehabilitation and education programmes.

The competition helps to raise awareness of the work of the charity, whilst encouraging the use of paint in primary schools and celebrating the creativity of 4-11 year-olds throughout the UK. Over 15,000 children entered the competition this year and produced some outstanding paintings using the theme ‘How I see myself’.

The national and regional winners' paintings are being shown in this exhibition.

Professor Maurice Cockrill RA, the Keeper of the Royal Academy Schools, has been supporting the competition for more than four years now and this year, he has painted a self-portrait to support the awards using the same theme as the young painters. This fantastic painting is also being shown in the exhibition.

The organisers are also thrilled to be showing a very special self-portrait by the famous artist and illustrator Quentin Blake CBE, who has also supported the competition over the last two years.

Watch a video of Professor Cockrill painting his self-portrait online at: www.sightsavers.org/juniorpainter

• Royal Academy of Arts