The Royal Hibernian Academy of Arts is delighted to announce the shortlisted artists for the 2026 Hennessy Craig Award and Homan Potterton Prize, two of Ireland’s most prestigious accolades for emerging painters with a prize of €20,000 attached to each award.

Since 2002, the Hennessy Craig Award has recognised exceptional talent among painters under the age of thirty-five who have studied at a recognised art college on the island of Ireland and exhibited in the open submission section of the Academy’s Annual Exhibition.

Introduced in 2024, the Homan Potterton Prize was established through a generous bequest from the late Homan Potterton, former Director of the National Gallery of Ireland and one of the country’s foremost art historians. The prize honours a painter under thirty-five whose work reflects the enduring traditions of figurative or landscape painting.

This year, the Hennessy Craig / Potterton jury has selected artists from both the 2024 and 2025 Annual Exhibitions. Each shortlisted artist has been invited to present two new works for this exhibition, with the final awards reflecting the artist’s overall practice.

2026 Shortlisted Artists: Maya Brezing · Mantas Poderys · Matthew Strickland · Liam Murray · Salvatore of Lucan · Owen de Forge · Manar Mervat Al Shouha · Eileen Leonard Sealy · Conor O’Connell · Daniel Coleman

The winners of both awards will be announced at the opening of the exhibition on Thursday, 12 February 2026.

This exhibition presents a rare opportunity to experience – and for discerning collectors, to acquire – the finest work from Ireland’s most exciting new generation of painters.

2024 Award Recipients

The Hennessy Craig Award (€20,000)
Bequest of the estates of Patrick Hennessy and Henry Robertson Craig
Awarded to Stephanie Deady

The Homan Potterton Prize (€20,000)
Bequest of the estate of Homan Potterton
Awarded to Fiach McGuinne