EDINBURGH.- Distinguished journalist, author and radio presenter James Naughtie FRSE (b. 1951) was at at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery this week for the unveiling of the most recent addition to Scotland’s national collection – a specially-commissioned portrait of the respected broadcaster.

Brendan Kelly’s (b. 1970) colourful painting, the first portrait of Naughtie to enter the nation’s art collection, was specially commissioned with the support of the Friends of the National Galleries of Scotland (NGS) and is now on display at the Gallery. It was made in the intimate setting of Naughtie’s Edinburgh home.

James Naughtie was born in Aberdeenshire and educated at the University of Aberdeen and then Syracuse University in New York. His career as a journalist began in 1975 at the Aberdeen Press & Journal. He later moved to The Scotsman and then onward to The Washington Post in 1981 as the Laurence Stern Fellow on its national staff. Three years later Naughtie joined The Guardian, becoming its Chief Political Correspondent.

Naughtie moved into radio and television in 1988. From 1994 to 2015 he was one of the main presenters of Radio 4's Today Programme; he is now a Special Correspondent for BBC News, and Books Editor. He has anchored every BBC Radio UK election results programme since 1997 and worked on every US presidential election since 1988. He presented the BBC Proms for many years, and among the series he has written for Radio Four was The New Elizabethans in 2012.

James Naughtie became Chancellor of the University of Stirling in 2008 and last year was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. He is a Trustee of the Man Booker Prize for Fiction and of the Great Tapestry of Scotland. He is the author of numerous books, among them The Rivals: The Intimate Story of a Political Marriage (2001), The Accidental American: Tony Blair and the Presidency (2007), and two novels, The Madness of July (2014) and Paris Spring (2016).

The painter Brendan Kelly was born in Edinburgh in 1970 and now lives and works in London. He studied at the Slade School for a BA (Hons) in Fine Art. A number of national UK collections hold Kelly’s work, including The National Portrait Gallery in London, where he has two portraits, the UK Parliament where he has a portrait of the former Deputy Prime Minster Nick Clegg, and the Bank of England. His portrait of the current Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, hangs in the Speaker’s State Rooms at the Palace of Westminster. He also has work in the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington DC. In 2006, Kelly was commissioned to go to Afghanistan as a war artist. He has won a number of awards, including BP Portrait Awards and at the Royal Society of Portrait Painters, of which he is a member.

James Naughtie FRSE said: “It's intimidating, even scary, to submit to an artist and realise that the result will be part of the national collection. Fortunately, Brendan Kelly has been meticulous, insightful and generous, and we have become friends. His use of colour is dazzling, and I feel privileged not just to be a permanent resident of the Scottish National Portrait Gallery - an honour no-one has a right to expect - but to have been in his hands.”

The artist Brendan Kelly said: “Although a lot of people mainly know Jim through his work as a radio broadcaster, he is interested in and involved with many things such as literature, history, politics and music. In the portrait I wanted to capture the sense of his broad interests, as well as his gregarious personality and his lively mind, but these can be difficult to sum up in an image. Somewhat inspired by Matisse and Van Gogh I decided I could best do this by introducing bright, flat colour to the painting which gives a sense of liveliness, positivity and generosity of spirit.”

Christopher Baker, Director of the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, said: “This vibrant and skilful portrait of Jim Naughtie is a terrific addition to the collection of the National Galleries of Scotland. Jim is chiefly known as an authoritative and engaging radio voice in the worlds of politics and culture; now thanks to Brendan Kelly’s very thoughtful and carefully crafted work, he can also be seen in a more intimate and private setting. Both the artist and sitter generously made a great commitment to the creation of this fascinating painting, the commission of which was made possible thanks to the Friends of the National Galleries of Scotland.”