The Georges River People’s Choice Prize and the Georges River Favourite Young Artist Prize of the 2023 Georges River Art Prize was announced recently after months of locals voting for their favourite submission.
The Georges River Art Prize is a biennial national art competition that provides a platform for visual artists to showcase their finest work.
People’s Choice voting has been ongoing since the Georges River Art Prize opened on 27 October 2023, with visitors casting their votes over the course of the exhibition.
Winner – 2023 Georges River People’s Choice Prize
The winner of the 2023 Georges River People’s Choice Prize is Shift by Tierney Gibbens, who will take home a $500 prize. Shift is a moody self-portrait set to a rich grey backdrop and surrounded by symbols that are both personal to the artist and universal in their meaning. Composed of oil on canvas, the work explores themes of guilt, confusion, and loss.
Visitors also had the chance to leave a comment as to why this artwork was their favourite. Audiences were struck by the artwork’s expressiveness, mood, and detail, with voters commenting:
“It’s a confronting piece that forces you to think. One concept it portrays really well for me is the fact that there is bravery and strength in being vulnerable. True, honest self-reflection can be hard, but is necessary so that we can grow.”
“The details in it are so lifelike it almost looks like she could walk out of the canvas.”
The Georges River Art Prize exhibition (painting and sculpture) will be on display at Hurstville Museum & Gallery until 18 January 2024.
Winner – 2023 Georges River Favourite Young Artist Prize
The Georges River Art Prize also features local young artists aged 7-17, who can submit drawings or paintings for exhibition. The winner of the $100 prize for the 2023 Georges River Favourite Young Artist Prize is Annie Zhang for her artwork Quiet snowy night.
Quiet snowy night is an acrylic painting of a snowy village at night, composed of shades of cool blue that contrast the warm yellow light of each house’s window. Visitors were captivated by Quiet snowy night, with one voter commenting:
“The composition of this painting is perfect, and the peaceful atmosphere of the snowy night with yellow lights is very picturesque.”
Georges River Council Mayor Sam Elmir said, “A big congratulations to Tierney and Annie for having their artworks chosen as the community’s favourite artworks; to be singled out by the local community is a wonderful accolade.
“These artworks received many compliments on the opening nights last year and throughout the exhibition period.”
The Georges River Art Prize ran from 28 October 2023 to 18 January 2024.
