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Portia Geach Memorial Award

Previous exhibitions 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006, 2005, 2004

2010

2010 marked the 45th anniversary of the Award with the prize first awarded in 1965 to Jean Appleton for her work Self Portrait.

2010 Winner and Highly Commended Artists

Prudence Flint was announced as the winner of the 2010 Portia Geach Memorial Award for her work entitled Scrambled egg. The announcement was made on Thursday 23 September at a VIP event held at the National Trust S.H. Ervin Gallery in Sydney.

The judging panel also highly commended Nerissa Lea's Hung and Sally Ross' Eliza.

48 artworks were selected from the 248 artworks submitted to be a part of the 2010 Exhibition.

The Trust Company congratulates Prudence, and all of the artists who have been a part of this year's Exhibition. The winner was awarded $18,000 in prize money.

The 2010 judging panel consists of Louise Tegart, Director of National Trust S.H.Ervin Gallery, and two trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales as per the wishes of Florence Geach; Eleonora Triguboff, Publisher / Editor of Art and Australia; and John Beard, renowned Australian artist. 

A selection of this year's artworks is available below:

Winner

Prudence Flint, Scrambled egg

Commenting on her win, Prudence said that she was thrilled to be a part of the Award's legacy. Since first entering the Award in 1998, Prudence's artworks have been hung in the Portia Geach finals ten times.

Artist Statment: In this painting I wanted to capture the intimate act of transforming one thing into another.

 Highly Commended

Sally Ross,  Eliza

Artist Statement: I have been fascinated by Eliza Hutchison’s work for some time. Her work is a complex combination of portraiture, costume, sculpture, narrative and exquisitely detailed photography.  Her enigmatic and stylish pieces are often labour-intensive - from hand-making elaborate costumes for a curious hairy beast roaming a rocky seashore, to more recent photographs and sculpture that transform photos of impossibly famous teen stars into shredded, perfectly chaotic sculptural forms, suggesting both a meticulous, razor-sharp violence or a romantic rippled Narcissus-like reflection. She is an adventurous and surprising artist.

I wanted to paint Eliza as she is not only a talented artist but she seems unaware of how fine-boned and beautiful she is.

Nerissa Lea, Hung

Artist Statement:

All I can really do is tell a story, (the reason I paint is because I can’t write)
last year I went to New York to Francis Bacon retrospective
it was summer
I was 3 months off turning 50
Two months and three weeks off living past the age my mother was when she died.
The last time I had been in New York was with her, it was summer then too, I was 16

So at 49 and some, I strolled around New York with the ghost of my mother by my side

At some stage I was in the MOMA
I had been looking at art for days, there was Beuys work on an end wall, one with a felt suit and stuffed hare, I thought….that’s me

Moulded like a wet felt into the shape I am, stuffed like that hare with my life so far, and suspended between the before and after of the calamity of being older than my mother ever was….

Carolyn McKay, Nicholas Hope

Artist Statement: My meeting with actor, Nicholas Hope, came about in a strange way.

Word of Mouth: Eyewitness Testimony was the title of my recent research where I considered the role of the live human voice in murder trials.  Part of my research methodology was to attend various murder trials including the so-called clingwrap killer. Sitting in court listening to evidence about the alleged murder by clingwrap immediately brought forth visions of Rolf de Heer’s 1993 film Bad Boy Bubby, starring Nicholas Hope. Soon thereafter, I noticed Nicholas Hope in the 2009 telemovie, 3 Acts of Murder. When I then saw Nicholas wandering around the university campus, I started to think that he would make a good subject for a portrait.

Inspired by Nicholas’ book, Brushing the Tip of Fame, I have painted him with his name projected and repeated, almost tattooed, over his face. With his features distorting the text and the text distorting his features, I contemplated the relationship between name, identity, celebrity and what the face reveals and conceals about someone’s inner life. I guess that is one of the privileges of painting portraits – that rare glimpse into the personality behind a public face.

Judy Lane, Joseph Corkhill at Garryowen

Artist Statement: Quite recently I was staying at Garryowen, a property near Binalong. It was here that I met Jo. I was taken by his kindness, demeanor and sensitivity. He is a brilliant garden and interior designer. And I was delighted that he would give me the time in his busy life.

 

Bridget Dolan,  Time & Plays

Artist Statement: At the moment I’m interested in playing with open ended visual cues, personas and everyday pressures.   In this painting I’ve used a strong period costume silhouette set against small everyday children’s play things.  My intention in working with these elements combined with dramatic lighting and perspective is hopefully to provoke questioning.

Symone Male, No requests

Artist Statement: ‘No Requests’ is a portrait of renowned DJ and formidable drummer Nicholas Hugh Naughton, better known as ‘Norto’.

DJ ‘El Norto’ has warmed up for countless rock bands over the past 15yrs including Billy Bragg, Dinosaur Jnr, John Spencer Blues Explosion, You AM I and Supergrass.

As a drummer Norto plays on a regular basis for Dave Mc Cormack and has done for the past 20 years in a variety of bands. Other outfits Nic has played with over the past two decades have included artists Glen Thompson, Robert Moore, Paul Medew, Shane Bruun and Ian Haug,  from Custard, The Go Betweens, and Powder Finger.

Currently Nic plays drums for Brisbane band ‘Gentle Ben and His Sensitive Side’ which also boasts Ben Corbett and Dan Baebler of ‘6Ft Hick’ and Dylan Mac Cormack. 

‘Gentle Ben’ is in the process of launching their third album 'Magnetic Island’ produced by Dave MacCormack.

The Aussie records were chosen by Norto from his personal collection. They have stood the test of time and symbolise the quality Australian musicians and artists have to offer the world stage.

‘El Norto’ does not appreciate drunken kids who make inane requests, hence, the title `No Requests’.

 

Maryanne Wick, Self Portrait in Studio (After Hammershoi)

Artist Statement: Self Portrait in Studio (after Hammershoi)’ encompasses elements about painting and subject matter that are meaningful to me as an artist. 

I am a great admirer of Danish artist Vilhelm Hammershoi (1864-1916). In December 2008, I travelled to Japan to see a retrospective of his work at the National Western Museum of Art in Tokyo. It was an education to observe so many of his works in the flesh. Each painting and drawing was both mesmerizing and unsettling. His interiors, figures and still life subjects have a disquieting stillness which, together with their subtle tones and diffused light, projects a haunting silence. According to the German poet Rainer Maria Rilke in 1905, ‘Hammershoi is not one of those about whom one must speak quickly. His work is long and slow, and at whichever moment one apprehends it, it will offer plentiful reasons to speak of what is important and essential in art’.

My studio is in the bush at the back of my house. I prefer to paint during the afternoon and at night. As the natural light fades, my silhouette is reflected in the glass door and, as it becomes darker outside, the light inside the studio makes my reflection even more distinctive. It was a natural choice to paint my own portrait in my special ‘sense of place’ - in the still of the night, surrounded by silence, and thinking of Hammershoi.  

Rebecca Lavis, Me and Locky

Artist Statement:

Painting; ‘sk8ing’,
you just keep trying to nail a trick.
You are focussed, it can hurt.
You don’t notice what’s going on around you,
you don’t notice what’s going on inside you.
Eventually you land it
and it feels like something has happened.
Something great
and you can notice everything again.

2010 Finalists Announced

The Trust Company would like to congratulate the 47 artists chosen to display their works at the 2010 Portia Geach Memorial Exhibition. Celebrating it's 45th year, the Portia Geach Memorial Award will showcase the exceptional talent we have among female artists in Australia today. The total number of works to display is 48.

Artist	Title of Artwork	Portrait Subject
Joy Beardmore	Mitch and Ted	Ted May
Melissa Beowulf	If all else fails...!	Michael Kempson
Melissa Beowulf	The Sleek Geek	Adam Spencer
Danelle Bergstrom	Independent Spirit	Ann Thomson
Joanna Braithwaite	Canine Council - Self Portrait with Dogs in Art	Self Portrait
Rachael Brook	The Gent and the Unicorn	Michael Zavros
Filippa Buttitta	Eyeing a Greener Future	Lee Rhiannon
Ann Cape	Grace Costanza with her Mother, Vera	Grace Costanza and her Mother, Vera
Sophie Cape	Betrayal	Self Portrait
Leeanne Crisp	Portrait of Andrew Sayers	Andrew Sayers
Sinead Davies	Swah	Swah (Sarah Shrapnel Designer)
Bridget Dolan	Time & Plays	Self Portrait
Prudence Flint	Scrambled Egg	Self Portrait
Judy Fullerton	The Lady Babushka	Irene Miller
Jessica Geron	Max and Me	Self Portrait with Son
Sophie Hann	In My Studio	Self Portrait
Juliet Holmes á Court	Yours in Paint	Self Portrait
Laura Jones	Ben's Chair	Benjamin Storrier
Deborah Kay	Off the Field	Beau Champion
Joanna Kitas	And This Too Shall Pass	Self Portrait
Judy Lane	Joseph Corkhill at Garryowen	Joseph Corkhill
Rebecca Lavis	Me and Locky (Self portrait with Son)	Self Portrait with Son
Nerissa Lea	Hung	Self Portrait
Symone Male	No requests	Nicholas Hugh Naughton
Marie Mansfield	Mrs A	Anna Alison
Sue Marshall	About to	Self Portrait
Gabrielle Martin	Jenny Nestor	Jenny Nestor
Bridgette McNab	Woman in a Red Dress	Self Portrait
Morna McIlraith	Roman Soprano	Rosella
Kerry McInnis	Sketch of Ann Thomson	Ann Thomson
Carolyn McKay	Nicholas Hope	Nicholas Hope
Lynn Miller	Brett Dean	Brett Dean
Linda O'Toole	Emma Pask - The Flapper	Emma Pask
Judith Power Thomson	All that Jazz	Don Burrows
Kate Rae	Alan Somerville - Artist Sculptor	Alan Somerville
Lesley Redgate	Jacky and the Red Shirt	Jacky Redgate
Marion Richards	Sonia Richards	Sonia Richards
Sally Robinson	Self portrait squared	Self Portrait
Sally Ross	Eliza	Eliza Hutchison
Sally Ryan	Yaw	Yaw Glymin
Claire Stening	The Year 2009	Self Portrait
Jodi Stewart	Suzanne Chick with her painting "Gift from Diego"	Suzanne Chick
Pam Tippett	Self portrait (for a change)	Self Portrait
Katherine Uren	Portrait of the Artist in Character	Self Portrait
Rosemary Valadon	Murder by the book	Tara Moss
Victoria Watts	Reading the Script - Jesse Spencer	Jesse Spencer
Maryanne Wick	Self Portrait in Studio (After Hammershoi)	Self Portrait
Frances Wiedersatz	What Next?	Self Portrait

Further information
The Trust Company is the trustee for the Portia Geach Memorial Award.

For more information about the award, please contact Jane Ryan on (02) 8295 8100 or awards@thetrustcompany.com.au.