Image by Martin Safro
CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
Dook, 22 Joppa Road, Portobello, Edinburgh, UK
BIO
Born in Yorkshire, Harriet is an Edinburgh based painter and photographer. Harriet primarily creates portraits and waterscapes, and works on both commissioned pieces and personal projects.
ARTIST STATEMENT
I am a painter and photographer working primarily in Scotland and Ireland, drawn to the quiet complexity of the human figure and the shifting moods of water. My work is mostly figurative, created in oil on board, and often moves between portraiture and waterscapes—two forms that, for me, speak to the same search for presence, stillness, and emotional resonance.
My approach is instinctive and direct: sketching, layering and adjusting, allowing the image to emerge with a sense of immediacy and rawness. Photography plays a role in my process too, helping to catch fleeting moments of stillness that inform the longer meditation of paint.
My waterscapes, with their subtle play of light and reflection, offer a counterpoint to the intensity of human presence. Together, these themes reflect my interest in the quiet yet profound moments that define our experience—moments where time feels suspended, and where meaning often lies in the spaces between what is seen and what is felt.
For information on portrait commissions, click here.
For information on wedding photography, click here.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2024
Rathbones Art Exhibition, Rathbones, George Street, Edinburgh, UK
Ceaseless Sea (solo show), Mayvn, 127 George Street, Edinburgh, UK
Making Connections, West Cork Creates, Cnoc Buí, Union Hall, Ireland
Spirit of the Sea, on board Spirit of Discovery, Saga, Atlantic Ocean
2023
Waterscapes (solo show), Blue House Gallery, Schull, West Cork, Ireland
The Four Seasons, West Cork Creates, Cnoc Buí Arts Centre, Union Hall, Ireland
Self Portrait Prize, Ruth Borchard Collection, online
2022
Scottish Portrait Awards 2022, Edinburgh, Banff, Glasgow, UK
Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2022 (invited artist) London, UK
Mythical Political, Fire Station Creative, Dunfermline, Fife, UK
Bones (solo show), Wasps South Block, Glasgow, UK
2021
Splint, studio of David Mach RA, London, UK
Figurative Art Now, Federation of British Artists / Mall Galleries (online)
SSA Contemporary Figures, Scottish Society of Artists (online)
Harriet Selka artist in residence, Mayvn, 127 George Street, Edinburgh, UK
Screen Test, Wasps Artist Studios (online)
Paint Matters, ESOP, The Art Pavilion, Mile End Park, London, UK
2020
Harriet Selka Mini Exhibition at Jessica Buckley Interiors, Edinburgh, UK
Harvest with West Cork Creates, Skibbereen, Ireland
2019
Fresh Zest (solo show), Pop Up Edinburgh, 17 Dundas Street, Edinburgh, UK
Into the Woods, with West Cork Creates, Skibbereen, Ireland
Ruth Borchard Self-Portrait Prize 2019, Piano Nobile Kings Place, London, UK
2018
Scottish Portrait Awards 2018, Scottish Arts Club, Edinburgh and Glasgow, UK
Under Shelter with West Cork Creates, Skibbereen, Ireland
2017
Inscape, Dundas Street Gallery, Edinburgh, UK
Scottish Portrait Awards 2017, Scottish Arts Club, Edinburgh, UK
The Other Art Fair, Old Truman Brewery, Brick Lane, London, UK
RSA Open 2017, Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, UK
West Cork History Festival, Skibbereen, West Cork, Ireland
2016
RSA Open Exhibition 2016, Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, UK
Harriet Selka, The Barn, Spencertown, NY, USA
space: dependent on the mind/ independent of time, 3 Ada Road, London, UK
2015
ex, blip blip blip, East Street Arts, Patrick Studios, Leeds, UK
Upstairs @ Blue House, Blue House Gallery, Schull, West Cork, Ireland
Degree Show, Edinburgh College of Art, UK
AWARDS
2023
Self Portrait Prize, Ruth Borchard Collection, selected artist
Scottish Landscape Awards, longlisted
2022
Scottish Portrait Awards, selected artist
2020
The Essential School of Painting Scholarship, awarded for The Bigger Picture
2019
Ruth Borchard Self-Portrait Prize, selected artist
2018
Scottish Portrait Awards, selected artist
2017
Royal Scottish Academy Latimer Award, winner
Scottish Portrait Awards, selected artist
2015
Astaire Art Prize, Edinburgh College of Art, shortlisted
PRESS
2022
BBC Radio Scotland, The Afternoon Show, 13 minute interview with Janice Forsyth
Sunday Post feature by Jan Patience
2021
Sky Portrait Artist of the Year Season 8, Episode 4
Review of Portrait Artist of the Year on blog Making a Mark
EDUCATION
2020 – 2021
The Essential School of Painting, London
The Bigger Picture (Post-graduate)
2012 – 2015
Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh
BA (Hons) Painting
2011 – 2012
Leeds College of Art
Foundation Diploma in Art & Design