Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes 2022

Journalist Laura Tingle by James Powditch

Australia's arguably most voyeuristic portrait prize exhibition is on display at the Art Gallery of NSW (AGNSW). This year, 52 portraits were chosen for inclusion from the 816 entries submitted to the AGNSW and generally the exhibition could be described as operating on safe territory with no controversies coming to light. 

Absent were images of politicians with the subjects for painting being drawn mainly from sports, film and television actors, singers, academia, writers, art collectors/benefactors, artists painting other artists and not a few self portraits (a common approach each year). Subjects included actors Lisa McCune, Hugh Jackman and Debra Lee Furness; fim director Taika Waititi; art collectors / benefactors, Liz Laverty, Patrick Corrigan, Peter Wegener; singers Deborah Conway, Peter Garrett, TV personalities such as Brooke Boney and Yumi Stynes to list a few.

Artists selected for the most part are the well established names such as Wendy Sharpe, Ross Townsend, Nick Stathopoulus, Natasha Bieniek, Anh Do, Robert Hannaford, Tsering Hannaford (Robert Hannaford's daughter), Jasper Knight, Mathew Lynn, Noel McKenna, Vincent Namatjira, Thom Roberts, Joan Ross, Paul Newton, Richard Lewer, Catherine McGuiness, Natasha Walsh amongst the group.

The winner this year is Blak Douglas for his portrait of artist, Karla Dicken standing knee deep in flood water (the Lismore flood being the background for the painting and very topical at present) carrying leaking buckets. Blak Douglas is the second Aboriginal artist to win the Archibald prize.

The Wynn Prize for landscape painting or figurative art has around 34 entries with an increasing number of Aboriginal artists submitting large works. These entries predominantly from Central Australian or APY communities have increased the scope of the exhibition and added a new dimension. Quite a few artists submit entries for both the Archibald and Wynne prizes with this year, Jude Rae, James Powditch and Noel McKenna being in both. 

The smallest of the 3 exhibitions is the Sulman Prize for subject, genre or mural painting and 31 entries were selected this year. This is the exhibition with the largest number of new artists being shown. Its a more esoteric and often mixed media/materials for the works. 

The exhibition runs from 14 May to 28 August 2022.

The Archibald Prize for portrait painting - 100 years and still going strong

2021 Winner: Guy Warren at 100 painted by Peter Wegner

The perennial public favourite in the visual arts, the Archibald Prize for portrait painting has opened at the Art Gallery Of NSW with the prize itself reaching its 100 year milestone. This year some 52 paintings were selected as finalists from the 938 entries. The 'Árchies' as they are affectionately known, are always perceived as a bit of entertainment as much from seeing which artists are selected to be exhibited as to whom they chose to be the sitters and subjects of their work.

The somewhat sentimental winner is a portrait by Peter Wegner of Guy Warren who turned 100 this year in a coincidental symmetry with the anniversary of the prize. Warren won the 1985 Archibald prize for his portrait of artist/sculptor Bert Flugelman and has been featured seven times in the Archibald exhibition.

This year there are a number of first time finalists as well as many established names such as Kate Beynon, Natasha Bieniek, Jun Chen, Lucy Culliton, Tsering Hannaford, Richard Lewer, Fiona Lowry, Mathew Lynn, Euan Macleod, Thom Roberts, William Mackinnon and Nick Stathopoulos.

The subjects chosen are varied with portraits of artists such as Gareth Sansom, Joe Furlonger and Del Kathryn Barton; art dealers and collectors such as Stuart Purves and Liz Laverty and a smattering of public figures such as COVID public health professional, Professor Raina Macintyre, NSW Governor Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AC QC, journalist Kerrie O'Brien, Australian of the Year Grace Tame, actor Rachel Griffiths to name a few. Portraits of politicians are largely absent.

Along with the Archibald Prize there is also the Wynne Prize for landscape painting or figurative sculpture. This year the finalists include a strong presence of indigenous artists reflecting their increasing engagement for this prize in particular, which resonates with their connection to the Australian landscape.  This year's entries maintain their use of large canvasses with vivid colours capturing either a mix of myths from country or direct representation of fauna or features of the land.

The Archibald, Wynne and Sulman prize exhibitions run from 5 June to 26 September 2021 at the Art Gallery of NSW

Sculpture by the Sea 2018

Time and motion - Ron Gromboc

Now in its 22nd year, Sculpture by the Sea returns to the coast walk between Tamarama beach and Bondi beach with over 100 works featuring all manner of creations and images. Some works are within the more recognised traditional medium of sculpture and others with more unusual. There is a strong representation of Australian (and NSW) artists selected with the wider international submissions coming from Spain, China, Sweden, South Korea, England, South Africa, Austria, Norway, Canada. France, Turkey, Israel, New Zealand with Japan being the largest source apart from Australia. 

The exhibition runs from 10 October to 4 November 2018 and its free.

Disc Vane- Ivan Black

Cirque du Soleil - Toruk - visual spectacle but where's the story ?

The flying Toruk enters the stage - Cirque du Solei - Toruk

For those used to seeing and being spellbound by Cirque du Soliel's brilliant circus arts, Toruk would seem to be something of an oddity. The acrobatics, juggling and gymnastics are marginal and occasional being replaced by the sheer visual impact of lighting, design, visual projections and a new development, puppetry.

Loosely inspired by James Cameron's film Avatar, the imaginative crew at Cirque du Soleil have created their own version of Pandora complete with the native Na'vi, Viperwolves, Toruk and the Tree of Souls. Roughly a prequel to the Cameron story in Avatar, Toruk concentrates on the Na'vi and the quest of three young men to find magical objects to restore the power of the tribe and the Tree of Souls. Apart from the simplistic monotone narration, there is little else to tell the audience of what is transpiring with marginal characterisation, an almost non existent story and no real central focus.

Sheer spectacle it is and the visual projections are dazzling whether through the creation of a volcanic eruption or the impression of a vast streams of water with a flood. The viewer's sense of dimension , space and shape are genuinely transformed by the quality of the imagery. But apart from this spectacle there is little else and with no live music and a reliance on recorded sound, this is a one dimensional effort by arguably the world's greatest circus group.  

Sculpture by the Sea 2016 - Exhibition Review

Travelling Bag - Yumin Jing

Sydney's annual sculpture exhibition, Sculpture by the Sea has made is Spring appearance inviting the public to appreciate the dimensional aspects and conveyance of meaning through this art form.

Adaptation - Nihariki Hukku

2016 is its 20th year and perhaps fittingly this year was the first time which the natural elements posed a risk to the exhibition. Unexpected King tides swept onto Tamarama beach and inundated those works located on the beach damaging three and dislodging others from their location. The result was three sculptures were so badly damaged that they had to be withdrawn with  only images on signage remaining where they had once stood. These were not the only ones however which were damaged and other works located on rock platforms close to the seaside also had to be removed.

27 countries are represented this year with entries from India, Germany, Sweden, China, Norway, Italy, Denmark, Brazil, Japan, England, the USA, South Korea, Netherlands, Slovakia, Serbia to name a few. Australia was well represented with roughly half of the entries sourced from this country.  Notably two entries were from sculptors who have passed away. The exhibition is comfortable, predictable and the forms well-executed, however it was safe territory all up. As a free exhibition it is always worth the trip to walk along the coastal path between Tamarama and Bondi Beach.

Cirque du Soleil - Kooza - Sydney 2016 - Review

acrobatic performers from Cirque du Soliel - Kooza - Sydney 2016

Kooza from Canada's Cirque du Soleil, currently on tour in Sydney, is one of the performing company's more intimate and old-school style circus acrobatic shows. The Big Top (often referred to as the Grande Chapiteau) is smaller with the seating brought forward around the 260 degree circular stage, the performers extending their activities to aisles closest to and around the audience. The clowns, often used a diversions around set, scene and act changes, are half the show, bringing a stronger interaction with the audience. This is intentional as Kooza's creators are seeking to 'create a scenographic environment that offers true proximity to the audience and where danger is palpable' combined with the two circus traditions of acrobatic performance and the art of clowning.

Initially created in 2007 by David Shiner, Kooza is a strong performance and visual show offering intensity and skill in smaller format than many of Cirque du Soleil's conceptually massive spectacles. The clown characters - The Innocent, the King, the Trickster, the Heimloss, the Obnoxious Tourist and his Bad Dog appear throughout with earthy, sometimes rude but genuine humour (The Bad Dog even managing to lift up his canine leg and do a fake urination on unsuspecting audience members).  The acrobatic acts are superb with many highlights including the lithe Mongolian contortionists in duet; the double decker hire wire act (they ride bicycles along the hire wire and have a fencing match); the jaw-dropping Wheel of Death, the solo chair balance act and the blurred hoola hoop routine to name a few. 

As with all Cirque du Soleil Shows, the custom created sounds are provided by a live 8 piece band with perfectly matched music to each moment of the show.  The set design for Kooza, includes a travelling tower called the Bataclan which moves artists in and out of the spotlight, serves as the bandstand and has two flanking curved staircases. A giant fabric structure call the Void with painted motifs of leaves compliments  the Bataclan with additional fabric sails which opena nd close around the tower. This is a clever and inspired set design of a high order which enables the audience to focus easily on the 50 odd performers on stage.

Cirque du Soleil have produced a masterful show which will be in Sydney until November 2016.

The Archibald Prize 2016 - Preview

Barry Humphries by Louise Hearman

The clink of champagne flutes, the swish of food trays and the furtive and not-so-furtive chatter of viewers heralded the first private viewing of the 2016 Archibald Prize before it opens to the general public on 16 July. Now in its 95th year (it was first awarded in 1921) and as popular as ever with hopeful artists (and often their subjects too) there is always that level of anticipation to see whom has been selected for the final cut and who were the subjects of their portraits. From well in excess of 2,000 entries, some 51 finalists were chosen to be hung this year with a smattering of regular entrants and some much newer artists appearing for the first time.

There were the usual swag of self protraits by artists Natasha Walsh, Nick Mourtzakis, Tsering Hannaford and one by Yvette Coppersmith where she envisaged herself as actress, Rose Byrne. Various politicians of current note - Woollahra Mayor, Toni Zeltzer (by artist Sinead Davies), Troy Grant, NSW Deputy Premier and Minister for the Arts (by artist Mark Horton) and Federal Liberal Minister for Energy and Resources, Josh Frydenberg (by artist Camillo De Luca). The well-known established and perennial favourites are there such as Imants Tillers, Guan Wei, Nick Stathopoulos, Nicholas Harding who all have entries although none are really so striking as to be controversial. Some of the portraits are almost naive in their structure and texture such as the portrait of art gallery owner, Roslyn Oxley (by artist, Sally Ross) or Dinosaur Designs co-founder, Louise Olsen (by artist, Belynda Henry).

The selected finalists this year are something of a staid collection - vanilla, pedestrian and acceptable but nothing that would frighten the horses. Perhaps when its all said and done, the Archibald has reached gentrification and like the gallery in which it resides, merely sits in the realm of the comfortable, the obvious and the commercially unsurprising. 

1985 Archibald winner, Guy Warren by Danelle Bergstrom

UPATE: Artist Louise Hearman has won the 2016 Archibald Prize for her portrait of Barry Humphries (top of this posting)

Exhibition Review - Sculpture by the Sea - Sydney, November 2015

forest by Deborah Sleeman

The 2015 Sculpture by the Sea is no less impressive than previous years with crowds climbing the narrow paths between Tamarama and Bondi beach for a view of 105 works by sculptors from local, interstate and 18 different countries. Now in its 19th year,  this annual exhibition continues to be a highly successful event going from strength to strength. In terms of accessibility, the exhibition ticks all the boxes - a free public exhibition set in a dramatic, evocative  location with diverse subject material. 

The artists chosen are a wide mix ranging from highly accomplished, internationally recognised sculptors through to younger artists just starting out in their creative careers. Each brings to the location their own insight into how to interact with the environment in which the exhibition is set. Some sculptors come and work on-site in a collaborative synthesis with the coastal context whilst others prefer to work in their studios and transport often large, heavy works from a distance. This year's exhibition had a strong Australian representation with NSW in particular having a large contingent. The exhibition ends on 8 November 2015.

intervention by Michael Van Dam

Ionis by Robert Hague

       

The Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes 2015 - Preview

John Baird - Bill - the late Bill Wright

The populist Archibald, Wynne and Sulman prize exhibition for 2015 will shortly open to the public bringing the usual surprises and amusement for the viewing public. The Archibald prize in particular is almost a spectator sport both in terms of whom is chosen as a finalist and the subject of their portrait. This year there are 47 finalists with a mix of well known and lesser known artists making the final cut. Artists such as John Beard, Peter Churcher, Shaun Gladwell, Robert Hannaford, Rodney Pople, Stewart MacFarlane, Jiawei Shen are amongst the better known names with almost a third of the finalists being virtually unknown. There is also a much broader selection of portrait subjects - artists Del Kathryn Barton, Judy Cassab, David Fairbairn; only two politicians, Bob Katter and Cory Bernardi; soldier Mark Donaldson VC; musician Daniel Johns; lawyer Charles Waterstreet, various self portraits and a nostalgic image of former AGNSW director Edmund Capon line the walls. Perhaps one of the most sentimental portraits is one of the late Bill Wright, former Deputy Director of the AGNSW and much loved art teacher from the National Art School who passed away in 2014. This is a very safe exhibition and unlikely to stir much controversy - unless the Trustees of the AGNSW select a winner and no-one can see why.

The Wynne Prize, for landscape painting or figurative sculpture and the Sulman Prize for subject, genre or mural painting attract far less attention and are smaller than the Archibald (Sulman has only 24 finalists and Wynne has 39 finalists) yet many of the works are from well established artists. This year Philip Wolfhagen, John R Walker, Aida Tomescu, Luke Sciberras, Angus Nivison are just a few of the better known names amongst the finalists. These are very much local Australian exhibitions with which the general community can relate and for that reason the popularity has never wavered over several decades.

The Photograph and Australia - Exhibition Review - Art Gallery of NSW - 21 March to 8 June 2015

 

Migrants arriving in Australia - David Moore, 1966

The Photograph and Australia is the most substantial large-scale thematic photographic exhibition that has been held in Australia for the past 25 years. Covering the period from the 1840s to 2015 and drawn from 35 private and public collections from across Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, the exhibition investigates the role that photography has played in shaping Australians views of the world, themselves and each other. The exhibition explores four themes: settler and indigenous relations; exploration; portraiture; and transmission being spread over nine rooms in the main temporary exhibition space at the Art Gallery of NSW.  The images in the exhibition trace the evolution of the photographic medium and its many uses covering documentary, commemorative to speculative and conceptual while posing questions about how Australia has been represented and imagined through photography.

The nine rooms in the exhibition are separately titled with sub themes: Self and Image; Imaging Place; People and Place; Picturing the colony; Cities and Communities; Becoming Modern; Critique; Technology; and Time and Transmission.  The selection of works contains some of the earliest examples of photography from the mid to late 19th Century hence special dimmed lighting enables ease of viewing.

Artists represented include Morton Allport, Richard Daintree, Paul Foelsche, Samuel Sweet, JJ Dwyer, Charles Bayliss, Frank Hurley, Harold Cazneaux, Olive Cotton, Max Dupain, David Moore, Sue Ford, Carol Jerrems, Tracey Moffatt, Simryn Gill, Robyn Stacey, Ricky Maynard, Anne Ferran, David Stephenson and many others.

This is a must-see exhibition which has been in the planning for over four years and contains many unique and fragile works rarely seen in public. The exhibition runs until 8 June 2015.

Cirque du Soleil - Totem - Sydney Review 2014

Cirque du Soleil - Totem - Evolution

Cirque du Soleil have returned to Australia with one of their more recent touring  performance creations, 'Totem' written and directed by long term collaborator, Robert Lepage. On stage are 45 performers from 16 countries demonstrating the breathtaking range of circus arts and skills, unique, themed costumes and imaginative state-of-the-art technological set designs which have become synonymous with their brand. Totem's overall theme is described as being the evolution of humanity from the primordial, amphibian period towards the aspiration of flight taking many founding myths into the narrative.

Totem utilises the Grande Chapiteau which better captures the theme and atmosphere intended for the show rather than being staged indoor in a sporting arena.  The various acts are themed under 12 titles being: Evolution, Mutation, Seduction, Legende, Nature, Culture, Attraction, Passion, Science, Elegance, Innovation, concluding with Celebration. The various performances include a large tortoise carapace which doubles as a gymnastics apparatus; seven foot high unicycles with female performers juggling and balancing metal bowls on their heads; fixed trapeze duo with a couple performing movements high on the trapeze; a juggler (dressed as a scientist) rolling multiple LED lit balls in a giant glass cone; a couple in Amerindian costume twirling at high speed on roller skates on a circular drum. Cirque du Soleil's entertaining clowns are in full swing with a 'Sad Fisherman' and an 'Italian Tourist' providing humour between the high end performances. An amusing, recurrent skit involves performers costumed in the various stages of human evolution from ape to Cro-Magnon to Neanderthal chasing a business man in a suit holding a mobile phone around the stage.

Altogether an impressive range of circus arts are on display in Totem with bars, hoops, rings, foot juggling, hand juggling, handbalancing,  high trapeze, roller skates, object manipulation, Russian bars and the unicycles.

Cirque du Soleil compose their own music for each of their shows and have the musicians cleverly concealed behind large inflatable reeds on-stage for Totem. The quality of the music and sound effects compliments the performances and matches the use of powerful, interactive projection technologies used for this show (which includes moving images of swamps, starry nights, lakes, volcanoes, beaches and the natural environment). The 'scorpion' bridge which doubles as both a stage performance point and an exit/entry point for performers operates in three dimensions, extending, retracting and curling. This technical mastery of design by Cirque du Soleil's production staff together with the on stage performers demonstrate that this is a second-to-none class show.

Pop to Popism - Art Gallery of NSW - Exhibition Review

The major Summer exhibition for the Art Gallery of NSW, Pop to Popism opened on the evening of Friday 31 October with the usual fanfare of copious amounts of alcohol, sporadic tray food and extensive crowd watching opportunities. The juxtaposition of Halloween parties occuring across the city and nearby added to the overall atmosphere of being at the Mad Hatters Tea Party  (with just as interesting an odd assortment of guests). Some of the fashion on display would have as readily been in place on the walls as on the floor.

The 73 artists represented in the exhibition are from a variety of different periods of time of the Pop period some very recent and many, not so. Predominantly the exhibition consists of colourful mounted wall works rather than sculptures, objects or other film/video installations which are often part of the 'Pop' genre or the wider Post-Modern period. The focus on consumerism as the central observation and social materialism is nonetheless well encompassed in the works. Past giants of this art form such as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Gerhard Richter have measureable inclusions in the works selected with Gilbert & George, Cindy Sherman, Martha Rosler and Jeff Koons adding a more contemporary influence. The sizeable Australian contingent include the works of Brett Whiteley, Jenny Watson, Imants Tillers, Garry Shead, Martin Sharp, Gareth Sansom, Colin Lanceley and Vivienne Binns. The exhibition is an in-house one staged by the AGNSW rather than a touring collection and to that extent the historical survey of pop art is limited. It is a pleasant experience but not one which will startle the viewer.

Sculpture By the Sea 2014 - Sydney

We're Frying Out Here by Andrew Hankin

Sculpture By the Sea has returned for its' 18th year to the 2 km coastal walk from Tamarama Beach to Bondi with 109 exhibiting artists represented, 33 of whom are international. Since this free exhibition was created in 1997 by David Handley, it has gone from strength to strength drawing significant crowds during the two weeks of viewing. The international contingent this year are drawn from Japan, New Zealand, China, Sweden, South Korea, Argentina, Czech Republic,Denmark, United Kingdom, Finland, Germany, Spain, Hong Kong, Thailand and the United States. The exhibition has become so successful over the years that it has been expanded to other venues including Cottesloe Beach In Western Australia and Aarhus in Denmark. The selection this year was drawn from 480 submissions from artists both in Australia and around the world. The exhibition remains a unique event set on the picturesque coastline walk with vivid ocean backdrops to complement the many installations made of steel, wood, plastic, cement and other materials. The exhibition runs from 23 October-9 November 2014 and remains one of Sydney's most enjoyable outdoor arts festivals.

Save Our Souls: Cave Urban

Our Memory in Your Place: Byeong Doo Moon 

The website address can be found at this link: Sculpture by the Sea

Art & About Sydney - 2014

Art & About Sydney 2014 (19 Sept - 12 Oct) is in its' final week and once again has made impressive creative use of many of the city's outdoor spaces and a few indoor ones as well. The theme this year of 'endangered' is well captured and contextually positioned in the urban settings chosen for performances, art exhibitions, eye-catching installations and the ever-present use of banners. A favourite each year has been the photographic Sydney Life on the St James walkway of  Hyde Park North. This year the range of work has been expanded to encompass all of Australia represented by 22 large scale type C reproductions. Neon Nomads in Hyde Park South has a series of ti pees with visual images projected on their exteriors. For those who prefer some more vibrant action, Shaun Parker & Co present a dance routine with shopping trolleys in the Pitt Steet Mall, Martin Place or Customs House Square. It wouldn't be Spring in Sydney without Art & About.

America Painting a nation - Art Gallery of NSW - Summer Exhibition 2013/2014

Charles Willson Peale: John & Elizabeth Cadwalader

The major summer exhibition of the Art Gallery of NSW for 2013/2014, America painting a nation, is promoted as the first historical survey of American painting held in Australia with many masterpieces shown here for the first time.The exhibition brings together 92 works from major artists, such as James Whistler, Edward Hopper, Mark Rothko, Georgia O’Keeffe and Jackson Pollock and has been brought to Sydney in collaboration with Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Terra Foundation for American Art. In reality, this is an edited version of an exhibition which was originally chosen for audiences in South Korea.

In terms of content and masterpieces, these are thin on the ground in fact. There are three paintings by O'Keeffe and Homer; two each by Sargent, Eakins and Cassatt; and one each by Hopper, Rothko and Pollock. As Sydney Morning Herald art critic, John McDonald, observed ".....although there are some strong pictures in this group, none might be described as iconic.." He further noted that the Art Gallery of NSW would be hard pressed to sell "...a show in which most of the artists will be unknown to the vast majority of viewers...". Although this art show is thin with major art 'names' there is an impressive body of work to be seen nonetheless and the choice of works will pleasantly surprise the viewer if expectations are not set too high. The exhibition has 7 set chronological themes in which the paintings are grouped with the stronger works predominately coming from the 19th Century. The choice of paintings for the 20th Century is decidedly weaker both in number and content.

America Painting a nation  is on show until 9th February 2014.

Thomas Moran - Grand Canyon of the Colorado River

Art & About - Sydney's annual outdoor art festival

Sydney's annual mutli-site public art festival Art & About has returned to Sydney again for 2013 with a range of public installations, exhibitions and performances in open spaces. The festival runs from 20 September to 20 October 2013 and has a number of public installations stretching from Circular Quay in the North of the City to Surry Hills in the South - notable this year are the giant brightly coloured snails located in various points in the city. Towering three to three metres high and four and half metres in length ('Smailovation' by title), these noticeable visitors can be found in Hyde Park, Customs House Forecourt, Queens Square and so on.  As with previous festivals, banners with a particular image and message form part of the festival and this year the theme is 'walking men' as part of the international art project, walking-men.com. Banners hanging from street light poles have figures printed in human scale demonstrating how different countries choose to represent the 'common man' in a pictogram.

Another highlight of Art & About is the photography exhibition 'Sydney Life' located in Hyde Park North which captures people and moments of Life around Sydney.Public art festivals such as Art and About are as much about accessibility as civic ambiance and add much to the concrete and glass urban landscape.

The Archibald prize 2012 and the winner is....

The winner of the 2012 Archibald Portrait Prize was announced as Tim Storrier, one of Australia's leading artists and no stranger to public recognition. His work "The histrionic wayfarer (after Bosch)" has no immediate face but actually Storrier's face can be detected elsewhere in the painting. The earlier post before this one shows the winning entry. Storrier is a well known and popular exponent of his art form and his works frequently sell for six figure sums in the commercial art galleries. An example of his better known landscapes is shown below.

 By Tim Storrier

Archibald, Wynne & Sulman Prizes 2012 - Preview

Angus McDonald - "Tim Maguire"

The sometimes controversial Archibald art award for portrait painting is on again and will have its Opening Night on the 30 March 2012. This year the Archibald provides fairly steady fare with few paintings which would cause any great debate or discussion. There are the usual smattering of well established painters represented amongst the finalists such as Luke Cornish, Adam Cullen, David Fairbairn, Ben Quilty, Jenny Sages, Martin Sharp, Wendy Sharp, Jiawei Shen, Tim Storrier,  Craig Waddell etc. and a few newcomers. Much of the works on display traverse the strongly abstract (Tim Storrier) to the more traditional portraiture techniques in form and style (Angus McDonald). On entry to the exhibition the viewer is confronted with a full size portrait of prominent business identity and arts imperator, David Gonski and from there on, the 41 individual works are paced along the walls of the AGNSW. This year there are no politicians amongst the subjects but there are a large number of self portraits or arts personages such as artist Lindy Lee, curator Hetti Perkins, art collector John Yu, artist Charles Blackman, musician Missy Higgins and a rather odd self portrait by Wendy Sharpe of herself with a penguin at Mawson's Hut in Antarctica.

Tim Storrier - "The histrionic wayfarer (after Bosch)

The Wynne Prize for landscape painting or figurative sculpture has a strong representation of works by established artists and perennials  such as Graham Fransella, Nicholas Harding, Jenny Sages, Tim Storrier, Imants Tillers, Aida Tomescu, Craig Waddell, Philip Wolfhagen etc. The Wynne Prize is also very steady fare and like the Sulman prize very much in the shadow of the much better known Archies. 

This year also marks the first time in 33 years that now former AGNSW Director, Edmund Capon will not be officiating at this exhibition following his retirement from the Gallery in December 2011.  In many respects, his well known (and much liked) irreverence for the prize is a sorely missed ingredient.  

Sydney's society art show - the Archibald in 2011

Once again the the Archibald Portrait exhibition has arrived on the 2011 art calender. Amongst the 41 selected entries are portraits of Roy Ananda, John Coetzee, Matt Moran, Hugo Weaving, Robert Jacks, Dr Ann Lewis , Richard Roxburgh, Robyn Nevin, Prof Penny Sackett, Cathy Freeman, Richard morecroft, Tim Storrier (a self portrait) and the ubiquitious Margaret Olley. The awarding of the first prize to Ben Quilty for his portrait of Margaret Olley (shown below) cements her position in Australia as the most often painted artist by other artists. The Archibald is often a bit of a controversial painting contest however the 2011 exhibition is relatively steady fare with no surprises.

Shades of Grey and Life's Momentum

Life has become compressed in the 21st Century and more focussed on the absolutes of black and white rather than shades of grey which actually characterises the bulk of life's events. Thus observed prominent and sometimes controverial Australian photographer and artist, Bill Henson, at the Art Gallery of NSW last night. Presenting the final talk of the photographic series 'My Favourite Things', Bill Henson observed the speed at which events, moments and decisions are reached, often with insufficient consideration and often less understanding.   

Henson's photographic work reflects an interest in ambiguity and in particular, transition. His photographs often resemble the texture and composition of a painting rather than a photograph. With this perspective he is well placed not only to observe change but to arbitrage between new technology and  retaining a passion for earlier, more measured forms of creative expression in music, film and other art forms. Music is one such linear transition he commented moving from vinyl to tape to CD and now to MP3 digital capture, yet condensing does not always guarantee retention of content or value. An obervation well placed.