Batsford Prize

Meet the judges

Mike Tonkin qualified as an architect in 1989 and his interest in nature led to his qualification as a landscape architect in 2014. He completed his PhD in the Engineering Department at the University of Bath and is currently a visiting professor at the Manchester School of Architecture and Sheffield University.

Anne Kelly is a textile artist and tutor. She trained in Canada and the UK and now teaches and speaks to guilds and groups. Her work is exhibited widely in solo and group exhibitions, she is the author of many best-loved Batsford textile books including Abstract Textiles and Textile Portraits.

Vaughan Grylls is a photographer, author and artist. His photography has been shown in the Photographers’ Gallery, Whitechapel Art Gallery and the Arnolfini. From 1996 to 2005 he was Chief Executive of the Kent Institute of Art and Design. In 2005 he founded the University for the Creative Arts at Canterbury, Epsom, Farnham and Rochester.

Polly Powell is owner of Batsford Books, the organiser of the Batsford Prize. She is the daughter of Geoffry Powell of Chamberlin, Powell and Bon, architects of the Barbican, in whose honour the Geoffry Powell Award for Architecture has been established.

Eoghan O’Brien is Batsford’s Art Director. He has nearly 20 years of experience in graphic design, the publishing industry and commissioning illustrators and photographers.

Neil Dunnicliffe is a literary agent. He was a publisher of children’s books for over 20 years, collaborating with many leading artists and writers at BBC, Penguin Random House and HarperCollins. In 2022, Neil set up Spring Literary, an agency representing children’s authors and illustrators.