An artist is rubbing shoulders with royalty - on canvas.

Naked Ambition, a self portrait by Vicky Brand, is on show in the Royal Society of Portrait Painters’ annual exhibition at the Mall Gallery in Trafalgar Square, London.

The piece, measuring 80 by 95 cms, is on display with portraits of many famous people, including the Prince of Wales.

Vicky Brand’s self portrait shows her undressed and laying on her stomach on a bed holding a paint brush.

Naked Ambition is Vicky’s first attempt at entering the exhibition and the former night nurse was successful in being selected first time. She was encouraged to aim higher after becoming a finalist in last year’s Artists and Illustrators Self Portrait Competition.

Vicky, from Ashford, who graduated from Kent Institute of Art and Design in 1999 with a degree in fine art said: “My art practice is concerned with identity, and my paintings talk about everyday concerns such as relationships, personal appearance, visual aesthetics, grief, loneliness and of course food.”

The exhibition at The Mall Galleries, London is open from now until Sunday between 10am and 5pm.