Guernsey Students Prize

David Ummels is a multicultural entrepreneur and curator. He is a member of the Council of the Guernsey Chamber of Commerce and their cultural Ambassador and Head of the Creative Industry. He is also a board member and mentor of Arts for Impact. David is a huge advocate for Guernsey and, as a passionate art collector for more than 20 years, he has an in-depth understanding of the global art economy and key relationships in the art sector. He founded Art for Guernsey in 2016, a charitable organisation managed by a team of passionate professionals who share a belief in the power of art to achieve their goals. The team believes that Guernsey possesses a very special asset: integrity. It is this that motivates Art for Guernsey to work for the greater good to bring communities together, provide educational opportunities through multi-curriculum projects and life-changing scholarships, promote Cultural Diplomacy and create an artistic legacy for Guernsey. The team has a strong remit to bring art where it is most needed, to inspire people and try to make them happy. Art for Guernsey is driven by a strong desire to create opportunities for islanders to discover high quality art for free, and to create catalysts within the art, educational and charitable sectors.

Click here for more detail.

Howard Bilton, a British-born entrepreneur and barrister, has made a multifaceted impact on tax advisory services, philanthropy, and the wine industry in Portugal and beyond. His ventures reflect a unique blend of business acumen and social responsibility, creating a lasting legacy in each sector he touches. 

Tax

As the chairman and founder of The Sovereign Group, Bilton has significantly influenced the tax landscape, particularly for expatriates and international businesses. The Group provides comprehensive tax planning and wealth management services, which help clients navigate complex tax systems. By doing so, it supports individuals and companies to optimize their tax positions within the legal framework, fostering an environment that is conducive to foreign investment and economic growth in Portugal. 

Charity

In the realm of charity, Bilton’s establishment of The Sovereign Art Foundation has made a notable impact on the local and international art scenes. The foundation not only recognizes and supports artists through awards and exhibitions but also raises substantial funds for charitable causes. A significant portion of its work is dedicated to using art as a medium for educational and healing purposes, particularly for disadvantaged children. Through these initiatives, Bilton has harnessed the power of art to make a tangible difference in the lives of many, providing both cultural enrichment and social support. 

 Wine

With Howard’s Folly, Bilton has ventured into the wine industry, intertwining the worlds of oenology and art. The winery is known for producing high-quality wines that reflect the rich terroir of Portugal, contributing to the country’s reputation as a producer of fine wines. Beyond the production, Howard’s Folly serves as a cultural destination, hosting art exhibitions and events that attract visitors from around the world. This unique concept not only promotes Portuguese wine but also elevates the cultural experience of wine tasting, setting a precedent for how wineries can engage with the arts. 

Overall Impact

Howard Bilton’s impact in the fields of tax, charity, and wine is characterized by a forward-thinking approach that leverages professional expertise to foster cultural and social development. By integrating his business endeavors with philanthropic goals, Bilton has shown that commercial success can go hand-in-hand with making a positive social contribution. His efforts have provided a model for sustainable development, showcasing how individual dedication to professional excellence and social responsibility can lead to broad and beneficial societal impacts. 

“It’s fair to say I’m obsessed about the sea and its changing moods are an overriding influence on my art… Tranquility, drama, ferocity, all I try to reflect in my studies.

In the people and places I paint, I try to bring out their personalities and emotions to create something deeper and more colourful than just a straight landscape or portrait. Sometimes adding my own poetry to bring more dimension the piece.

I’ve been a scribbler ever since I could pick up a pencil so I was always destined to be an artist somehow. After schooling in Guernsey I went off to Falmouth College of Arts to study an Arts foundation, then a BA honours in illustration. After some time in Cornwall I moved back to Guernsey combining work as a graphic designer, illustrator and artist.”

www.jamescolmer.com/

John qualified as a solicitor in England in 1983. He has lived and worked in South East Asia since 1988 and in 1992 his former employer was one of the first foreign law firms to open a branch office in Beijing. John has worked as a solicitor and notary public in both Hong Kong and Gibraltar where he established his own legal practices. He also serves as an adjunct professor of the Texas A & M University. After serving as group legal director for over 20 years John is now retired but he remains on the Sovereign Group board as non-executive director and as a keen collector of art has been a passionate supporter of the Sovereign Art Foundation since its inception.

Roger is a non-executive director sitting on the boards of both Sovereign companies in Guernsey, and he has been associated with the Group since 2011. Prior to that he worked in private banking, being the MD of the first Spanish bank to set up in Gibraltar in 1987. In 1990 he moved to Guernsey to become the MD of the first Spanish bank to set up in Guernsey. “I would describe my taste in art as old fashioned. Personally, I have no talent for graphic art whatsoever, but my wife is a talented amateur artist, and she has given me an appreciation for it. It has been a great pleasure and privilege to be a part of the judging process, and I am proud of the fact that Guernsey was the second centre to introduce a Sovereign Art Foundation Students Prize.”

Nicola Swash Hardie’s love of the arts began early on as a child actor with The Royal Shakespeare Company where she spent several years juggling textbooks with the excitement and thrill of appearing on the professional stage.

Graduating from Brunel University with First Class Honours in Art History she gained a post graduate diploma in Arts and Television production from Sheffield Hallam and moved her allegiance from performance to the visual arts.

With a long-held desire to work in the industry, Nicola took up a graduate post as a lecturer and guide at Historic Royal Palaces and taught part-time courses in Art History and Cultural Studies at her old university.

She was later invited to join The Royal Household as Administrator for a new high-tech Royal Collection Trust Paintings Conservation studio based in the Home Park, Windsor Castle.

Nicola remained with the RCT for 15 years, assisting the organisation and schedule of restoration works for the oil paintings department – a collection of some 8000 works – and preparing and overseeing the transportation and hanging of paintings within the Royal Houses and to galleries worldwide.

Her specialist work in early digital infrared reflectography supported and assisted leading curators and conservators to identify unattributed paintings in the Collection; a number of these images feature in Royal Collection catalogues and major art publications.

Nicola’s love and appreciation of the arts continues; despite having worked primarily with Old Masters, she is also hugely enthusiastic about the continued development and motivation of young people to create modern, original and illuminating works of art.

Guernsey and London-based figurative artist, Sally Ede-Golightly, paints with oils on linen. Her work has a loose yet realistic feel. She is drawn to quiet and calm compositions, yet often offsetting ‘calm’ against chaotic themes. Having trained as a portrait painter at London Fine Art Studios and Heatherleys School of Fine Art, her technique is founded on traditional atelier methods but uses a palette and language that she has developed over time.

Sally was awarded the Heatherleys Portrait Prize in 2019 by Daphne Todd OBE. She has exhibited in several prestigious group exhibitions in London including with the Society of Women Artists (SWA), the Royal Society of Portrait Painters (RP) and ING Discerning Eye. She had her first solo exhibition in 2019 at the Gate House Gallery, Guernsey, and has completed notable commissions for private and public collections, including commissions from the Royal Society of Portrait Painters in London. In the Channel Islands she has painted Dr. Nicola Brink MBE for lePassage Gallery in Alderney and WWII Czech-RAF pilot, Jaroslav Novak, for Art for Guernsey, which has been exhibited both in Guernsey and at the Czech Embassy in London.

Stephen is the managing director of Sovereign Trust (Channel Islands) Limited and has been with the Sovereign Group since 2004. Prior to moving to Guernsey in 2010, Stephen was a director and senior legal counsel in the Group’s Gibraltar office. He qualified as a lawyer in England in 1998 and specialised in advising on estate planning, trusts and private client matters. “My parents would probably describe me as being artistically challenged at school! My grandfather was an amateur painter and took up marquetry in his retirement and receiving some of his pieces began my love of collecting art. The talent in the youth of Guernsey is truly remarkable and I feel extremely privileged that the Sovereign Art Foundation is able to give them a platform to exhibit that talent.”