THREE artists from Craven are hoping for the support of the public to help one of them being in the running to be named ‘Yorkshire Artist of the Year’.

Annette Toland, from Gargrave; Judith Woolley, from Ingleton, and Jean McQuillan from Skipton are amongst more than 250 up and coming artists from across the whole county to enter the competition, being organised by a Leeds based company.

The winner will receive £400 in art vouchers, and will also be given the opportunity to showcase their work to a larger audience in Leeds.

A public vote which ends next week will narrow the entries down to just 15 and the overall winner will be decided by an expert judging panel.

The contest is being organised by aluminium glazing specialist Express Bi-folding Doors, which invited artists aged 16 and over to submit their favourite piece of work, to be in with the chance of winning the top prize. The winner will be given the opportunity to exhibit their work at the company’s national flagship showroom in Leeds

In addition to being crowned ‘Yorkshire’s Artist of the Year’, the winner will receive £400 worth of art supply vouchers and have one of their pieces auctioned for charity to raise money for the retailer’s chosen charity, St Gemma’s Hospice, Leeds. Smaller voucher prizes will also go to second and third place.

Steve Bromberg, managing director for Express Bi-folding Doors, said: “Given that we have over 27,000 square feet of showroom facility and a hotbed of artistic talent across Yorkshire, we felt it was time to create an award which truly showcases the region’s flair and creativity.

“We’ve been blown away by the high volume and standard of entries throughout the region and we would now urge people across Craven to take a look at our online gallery and vote for their favourite.”

The winning artist will have their work on display for the next 12 months and potentially auctioned at Express Bi-folding Doors’ showroom in Leeds.

The top 15 finalists will also have their submissions temporarily on display at the showroom - providing a public forum for those wanting to get their art some additional exposure.

People can vote for their favourite online at:expressbifolds.co.uk/local-artist-search. Voting ends at midday on August 5.