Curtis Holder is a London-based artist working in graphite and coloured pencils on paper. He studied Graphic Design at Kingston University and completed postgraduate studies in Character Animation at Central Saint Martins, London.

Taking inspiration from intimate conversations with the people he draws, Holder’s large-scale multilayered pencil drawings are dynamically tender, emerging in a wayward series of febrile lines to reveal a sense of his subjects’ form, movement and emotional intent. Preliminary pencil marks remain on the paper as part of his energetic process of capturing fleeting gestures and emotions with sensitivity and raw honesty. 

Following two decades of working as a primary school teacher, in 2020 Holder won Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year, a prestigious portraiture competition televised in the UK. Impressed by his distinctive visual language, the panel of judges described his work as ‘magical […] courageous and startlingly new’. Garnering further critical acclaim and awards for his work ongoing, Holder has exhibited widely in the UK and in Paris. His work is held in private and public collections including the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and Soho House. He is a member of Contemporary British Portrait Painters (CBPP) and an Associate Member of the Society of Graphic Fine Art (SGFA). 

Holder’s solo exhibitions include: ‘The Makers: Portraits from Backstage’, National Theatre, London (2023); ‘Something Unspoken’, 45 Park Lane, London (2021-22). Recent group exhibitions include: Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize, Trinity Buoy Wharf, London (2022); Wells Art Contemporary, Wells Cathedral, Somerset (2022); The Derwent Art Prize, gallery@oxo, London (2022); Portrait Artist of the Year, Compton Verney (2022); Royal Society of Portrait Painters, Mall Galleries, London (2022); Contemporary British Portrait Painters, The Department Store, Brixton (2022), The Pastel Society, Mall Galleries, London (2021 & 2022), The Society of Graphic Fine Art, Mall Galleries, London (2021 & 2022).

Recent awards include: St Cuthbert’s Mill Award, Wells Art Contemporary (2022); The Anthony J Lester Art Critic Award, The Pastel Society (2022); The Frank Herring & Sons Award, The Pastel Society (2022);  Highly Commended Award, Society of Graphic Fine Art (2021); Winner, Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year (2020