Talented Wicklow Pair Shortlisted for National AIB Portrait Prize

Bray photographer Alannah Henry and Donard-based teenage artist Isla Case were named among a combined 46 shortlisted entries, selected from hundreds of submissions from across the country

Wicklow is flying the flag on the national stage this year, with two local artists making the shortlist for the prestigious AIB Portrait Prize and AIB Young Portrait Prize, run by the National Gallery of Ireland.

Alannah Henry, from Bray, has been shortlisted in the main AIB Portrait Prize category for her photograph Sa Samhradh.

She joins 25 other artists nationwide competing across painting, video, pastel, mixed media and photography.

The overall winner of the AIB Portrait Prize will take home a €15,000 cash prize and be commissioned to create a work for the National Portrait Collection — worth a further €5,000.

Two highly commended entries will also receive €1,500 each.

This year's judging panel is made up of Dr Brian Fay (artist and lecturer at TU Dublin), Christina Kennedy (Senior Curator and Head of Collections at the Irish Museum of Modern Art), and Dr Joseph McBrinn (art historian and lecturer at Belfast School of Art).

AIB Young Portrait Prize Nominee Alannah Henry from Bray with her entry Sa Samhradh 

Sixteen-year-old Isla Case, from Donard, has been shortlisted in the AIB Young Portrait Prize for her oil-on-canvas piece Immersed.

She's one of 20 young artists aged 18 and under selected for this year's competition, and one of just a handful representing the 16–18 age category.

Category winners across the four age brackets (6 and under, 7–11, 12–15, and 16–18) will each receive a bespoke art box and cash prize, while the overall Young Portrait Prize winner will be presented with a personalised wooden box of high-quality art materials and €500. Judges for the young artists' award are Amanda Coogan and Carl Hickey, both artists, alongside Donna Rose, Curator at the National Museum of Ireland.

AIB Young Portrait Prize Nominee Isla Case from Donard with her entry Immersed

Dr Caroline Campbell, Director of the National Gallery of Ireland, said she was proud to continue the partnership with AIB, adding that this year's shortlist shows an "incredible breadth of Irish artistic talent."

She said watching entries arrive is one of the highlights of the Gallery's year, and that she's looking forward to the exhibition's runs in Galway and Limerick as well as Dublin.

AIB Chief Executive Colin Hunt echoed that pride, saying the shortlist reflects the "wonderful creativity" of portrait artists of all ages from communities across the country. He said AIB is proud to continue backing the competitions at the National Gallery.

For Wicklow, that national recognition lands close to home — with Alannah Henry and Isla Case both part of the "strong selection" Hunt referenced.

Both pieces will go on public display in the Portrait Gallery (Room 23) at the National Gallery of Ireland from 14 November 2026 to 14 March 2027 — well worth the short trip up from Wicklow for anyone keen to see local talent on the national stage.

The winners of both prizes will be announced at a ceremony at the National Gallery on 2 December 2026.

Following its run in Dublin, the exhibition will travel to the Galway Arts Centre (3 April – 27 June 2027) and Limerick City Gallery of Art (9 July – 15 August 2027), giving the shortlisted works — and Wicklow's two representatives — an even wider audience.

The AIB Portrait Prize and AIB Young Portrait Prize are presented by the National Gallery of Ireland in partnership with AIB, Galway Arts Centre and Limerick City Gallery of Art.