Rina, 1999 by Tai-Shan Schierenberg. Oil on canvas. Courtesy Flowers East Gallery.

Contemporary British artist Tai-Shan Schierenberg is kicking off the artistic year at Queen’s University in Belfast, where a collection of his recent work will be on display at the Naughton Gallery until February 25.

Born in Skegness in 1962 to a Chinese mother and German father, Schierenberg studied at St Martin's and the Slade School of Art. He first came to prominence in 1989 when he won the John Player Portrait Award with a painting of his wife, artist Lynn Dennison.

As part of the prize he was commissioned to paint the portrait of writer and barrister John Mortimer for the National Portrait Gallery, which also holds his portraits of Lord Carrington (1994) and Lord Sainsbury (2002).

Schierenberg's intimate portraits of family and friends and his well-publicised portrait commissions, including that of HM the Queen and Prince Philip, convey an insight into the psychological and aesthetic aspects of the genre.

Black Coffee, 2003 by Tai-Shan Schierenberg. Oil on board. Courtesy Flowers East Gallery.

"It is not until the fourth or fifth attempt at painting a subject that I feel I may have begun to capture their real essence as people," he explains. "I'm always striving for that magic moment when paint becomes an illusion of reality."

Schierenberg’s technique illustrates how an artist overcomes many of the restraints of portraiture to create a likeness of a living human being. Having only one or two short sittings with his subject, he makes an oil-sketch and uses photographs for additional information.

Font 2004 by Tai-Shan Schierenberg. Oil on board. Courtesy Flowers East Gallery.

His subtle landscapes, interiors and still life paintings, as well as his portraits, have led to international acclaim and comparisons with Lucien Freud.

"I'm delighted to have the opportunity to put the work of one of the UK's best-known portrait painters on display for people in Northern Ireland," said Shan McAnena, Naughton Gallery Curator.

The exhibition will also see the premiere of a new work commissioned by the university. Schierenberg's latest portrait depicts Nobel Laureate Seamus Heaney and will become part of the university’s permanent collection.

Set to be unveiled on February 3, when the artist will visit the gallery, the painting will then be included in the show before being hung in the university's Great Hall.