Upton artist in top three on Sky series Landscape Artist Of The Year

An artist from Upton made it into the top three in the latest episode of a Sky series.

Susan Isaac appeared on Landscape Artist Of The Year last year as a wild card, but this year made it through to the pods where she was placed in her episode's top three, which was aired last night.

Susan and the other five contestants each had four hours to paint a landscape, inspired by their location at The Eden Project, Cornwall.

Susan said: "I was so surprised. I think I was the last of the three to be announced and I really didn't think I would be among them.

"I didn't get a chance to see the other people's during the day so it was really good to see what they all came up with."

One of the things Susan does when she paints is try and bring the foreground forward to the viewer, rather than just focusing on the background.

Artists get a lot of creative freedom in the show, and according to Susan "it's not one thing or another and the judges seem to appreciate different approaches".

She added: "Composition and structure is what I look for when I start painting, and there was very little of that in the view that I was provided with, which is why I used the chair and the pod frame."

While the painters only get four hours to complete their work, the filming process actually takes much longer, as contestants are regularly stopped for interviews or to show a presenter their work.

Susan said: "I think the worse thing was when we are reaching and about to do something that you need to get done and then somebody appears at your elbow and says can we have a word with you."