NEAL HUGHES

A former illustrator, Neal Hughes has been painting professionally for over 40 years. His work has been accepted into many national juried exhibitions and has won many awards including an Award of Excellence at the prestigious International Marine Art Exhibition at the Gallery at Mystic Seaport. He was the grand prize winner of the Utrecht 60th Anniversary Art Competition, winning the top prize out of over 12,000 entries.

Awards that Neal Hughes won in 2024—2019 include:

• Best of Show Award, Paint Grand Traverse Competition 2024, Traverse City, MI
• Best of Show Award, Wayne Plein Air Festival 2024, Wayne, PA
• Best of Show Award, Olmsted PleinAir Invitational 2024, Atlanta, GA
• First Place, Dec./Jan. Modern Impressionist Salon, Modern Impressionist Magazine 2023-2024
• Best Americana Award, Cape Ann Plein Air Festival 2023, Gloucester, MA
• Grand Prize Award, Bath County Plein Air Festival 2023, Bath County, VA
• 2nd Place Award, National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society Best of America Exhibition, 2023
• Alden Bryan Memorial Landscape Painting Award of Excellence, Oil Painters of America Thirty-second Annual National Juried Exhibition of Traditional Oils 2023
• Award of Merit, 2023 National Oil & Acrylic Painters Society Best of America Small Works Exhibition
• Second Place Award, Quick Draw Contest at Plein Air Easton 2023, Easton, MD
• Second Place Award, Gloucester Arts Festival Plein Air Competition 2023
• Merit Award, Paint Grand Traverse Competition 2023
• The Wayne Art Center Award, Wayne Plein Air Festival 2023, Wayne, PA
• Best Boat Painting, Shadows On The Teche Plein Air Competition 2023, New Iberia, LA
• Artists Choice Award and Life of a Waterman Award, Plein Air Easton 2022, Easton, MD
• 2nd Place Award, Gloucester Arts Festival Plein Air Competition 2022, Gloucester, VA
• 3rd Place Award, Paint Annapolis 2022, Annapolis, MD
• Best of Show Award and Founders Vanishing Landscape Award 2022, Olmstead Plein Air
• Award of Excellence 2021, American Impressionist Society National Juried Exhibition
• Life on the Farm Award, Plein Air Easton 2021, Easton, MD
• Best Urban Landscape Award, Lighthouse Art Center Plein Air Festival 2021
• Honorable Mention Award, Art Renewal Center International ARC Salon Competition 2021
• Best of Show, Richeson75 Landscape, Seascape & Architecture 2020 Competition
• Cezanne, Best Use of Light Award, Olmsted reImagined, PleinAir Invitational 2020
• Best Associate Award of Excellence, Oil Painters of America National Exhibition 2019
• Gold Medal, Oil Painters of America Eastern Regional Exhibition 2019
• Artists Choice Award, Best Nocturne, and Fourth Place Award, Lighthouse Plein Air Competition 2019, Tequesta, FL

Neal was elected a “Fellow” of the American Society of Marine Artists and is also a member of Oil Painters of America.

He is a graduate of The Philadelphia College of Art (University of the Arts) and resides in Medford, New Jersey.

“New Jersey artist Neal Hughes uses his considerable artistic skills as an act of celebration and testament, and he is rewarded with inspiration that helps him make creative decisions that elevate his oil landscapes.” – M. Stephen Doherty, Editor, American Artist Magazine.