A whopping 109 finalists have been selected in the prestigious biennial Georges River Art Prize 2021.
Hundreds of artists from all over the country entered this competition, with a major painting prize worth $10,000 and other categories sharing an award pool of $20,000.
The artworks were selected by a panel of award-winning judges:
Alison Clark, renowned curator of Australian Art, sculpture, installation, Aboriginal art and culture
Simon Chan, Board Director of VisAsia at the Art Gallery of NSW, Founder and Director of Art Atrium
Steve Lopes, internationally acclaimed fine artist with works represented in major art spaces around the world: National Gallery of Australia, State Library of NSW, Federal Parliament House Art Collection, Time Warner in New York and Rolls Royce in London
Ms Clark said, “I would like to acknowledge all the artists who entered this year’s Art Prize as the standard was very high.
“The selected works certainly vary in terms of style, subject matter and size, which will make for an interesting and diverse exhibition.”
Mr Chan said, “We enjoyed reviewing all the artwork as judges. During the difficult times of the COVID pandemic and the lockdown, it is wonderful for Georges River Council to continue to show support of the arts with the Georges River Art Prize.”
“It was great to see such vibrancy and reflective qualities in the works submitted for the Georges River Art Prize,” added Mr Lopes.
“It’s been such a difficult year, but there was a sense of engaging urgency and contemplation in a lot of the works we chose as finalists.”
The outstanding artworks selected for this year’s Art Prize capture a range of themes, including life under lockdown, quiet suburban streets and the natural environment in a mist of traditional and abstract representations.
Georges River Mayor Kevin Greene said, “As the Art Prize continues to grow, we saw entries from all around Australia, including: Myocum in NSW, Glenore Grove in QLD, Wharparilla in VIC, Wallaro in SA and Newstead in TAS.
“The hundreds of entries this year is not only a pleasant sign of resilience in the art industry, but also a call from talented individuals for opportunities to express their unique creativity during challenging times.
“I am proud that we are offering that platform during a time of need.
“I would like to thank our judges for their time selecting from such an outstanding year of entries. I look forward to learning the winners of this year’s awards.”
Winners’ announcements and finalists’ exhibition (subject to NSW Public Health Orders and COVID-19 restrictions):
The winners of the Georges River Art Prize 2021 will be announced on Friday 12 November 2021 at Hurstville Museum & Gallery
Winners of the Georges River Little Artist Prize and Youth Prize will be announced on Thursday 11 November 2021 at Clive James Library, Kogarah
The finalists’ exhibition will be on show from Saturday 13 November 2021 to Thursday 20 January 2022
For more details on the Georges River Art Prize 2021 finalists, please visit www.georgesriver.nsw.gov.au/grap
