Whitsundays Art Prize Finalists Announced
Sixty-three Australian artists have been selected as the finalists in the Whitsundays Art Prize Exhibition, held this year at the Coral Sea Resort in Airlie Beach.
The theme for this year’s call for entries was ‘memories,’ and artists were encouraged to consider and reminisce upon a certain moment in time, a place or person that inspired them, or an experience that shaped them.
Exhibition Coordinator Glenda Brown said of the entries: “The standard of submissions this year was of extremely high quality. All participants should be incredibly proud of themselves.”
“It’s wonderful to be able to support artists, local, intrastate and interstate, and to be able to display such a high calibre of works for our audiences.”
“With so many entries it was an excellent reflection on the talent and scope of Australian artists, and a great insight into the ‘memories’ of what stands out for these artists.”
Mary Ann Santin of ARI Whitsundays and guest judge of the 2022 selection panel said “the selectors were inundated with quality entries from all over Australia. The finalists provide an eclectic response to the theme of ‘memories,’ and we look forward to curating an exciting exhibition for the Whitsundays Arts Festival.”
The winning artwork of the major $5,000 Regional Arts Prize will be acquired into the Whitsunday Regional Council art collection, joining Lisa Ashcroft’s winning artwork ‘Bleached Blue Coral Reef’ from 2021.
Winners will be announced by this year’s guest judge Tracy Cooper-Lavery, Director, Gallery & Visual Arts at Home of the Arts Gold Coast (HOTA).
Ms Cooper-Lavery will award the total $11,200 in prizes to the recipients of the Whitsundays Regional Arts Prize, Local Artist Award, Young Artist Award, 2D Works on Paper Award, 2D Painting Award, 3D Sculpture Award, and the R&K Kenyon Award. Prize winners will be announced at the opening of the Exhibition on Friday 23 September. Doors open to the public 6:30pm to 8pm in the Elbow Room at the Coral Sea Resort. The highly coveted People’s Choice prize is chosen by visitors to the exhibition.
With a prize pool totalling $11,200 and sponsored awards from the Whitsunday Regional Council and businesses around the region, the Exhibition is a nod to how a community comes together to showcase Queensland and Australian artists.
With the bigger space in the Coral Sea Resort, the Exhibition has expanded to display over seventy 2D and 3D works from 63 artists. Of the 63 finalists that were selected, eleven of the finalists reside outside of Queensland, and 50% of finalists are from the Whitsunday/Mackay region.
The Whitsundays Art Prize Exhibition will be on display at the Coral Sea Resort from 23 to 30 September as part of the Whitsundays Arts Festival.
See the full list of FINALISTS.
RSVP on FACEBOOK.
More about the WHITSUNDAYS ART PRIZE EXHIBITION.
—
For media enquiries, interviews, and photo opportunities, please contact Marketing Director Anna Sparkes.