What makes portrait painting still so important and relevant in today’s technological age?

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James Nicholls presenting from Royal Society of Portrait Exhibition 2026, The Mall London

What makes portrait painting still so important and relevant in today’s technological age?

I just presented The Art Review at from the Royal Society of Portrait Painters Exhibition 2026 at the Mall Galleries, London.

In a world increasingly dominated by digital images and artificial intelligence, portrait painting still possesses a unique power: the ability to stop us, move us, and make us look closer.

It is always such a pleasure filming at one of Britain’s most prestigious portrait exhibitions, featured in The Art Review programmes during the next two weeks. The exhibition is on until 19th May.

In collaboration with Royal Society of Portrait Painters and Mall Galleries.

Warm regards

James

James Nicholls