>>WINNER<<

Joe Whyte – ‘Through a Haze’

25.5cm x 40.5cm, Oil on Linen

Statement by Joe Whyte

“Having grown up in Melbourne’s inner-city, I have long been inspired by it’s streets and architecture. The buildings have formed such a fundamental part of my upbringing, and have shaped my view of life the city.

Increasingly I use this architecture to explore the idea of the alienation of life within a large city. My work explores the juxtaposition between the close proximity in which we live, and the distance and sense of isolation which so often comes along with that life.”

Highly Commended

Lily Cummins – ‘The shifting of sleep’
76cm x102cm, Acrylic and oil stick on timber board

Statement by Lily Cummins

“This landscape was first conceived in the flicking light between sleep and awake as my work is primarily concerned with exploring ambiguous narratives.

Using acrylic paint and oil stick to create a conversation between repeated forms and structures, the work was highly process driven as I was interested in the interplay between colours and marks.

My practice involves investigative mark making and exploring a dissonance within colour theory. Although this landscape is imagined it feels both familiar and strange at the same time.”

Highly Commended

David Asher Brook – Coming Home (Lyne Park)
55cmx55cm, Mixed media(enamel and acrylic on linen)

Statement by David Asher Brook

“Coming Home, this was painted in the late afternoon. This man, a businessman, was coming home from the ferry. 

I added the figure in by the time the sun almost set. I used the landscape there in this work as a reference to create my own version of the scene.

I am drawn to paint outside, often within nature where discovery is heightened. 

I try to achieve a consistency and uniform weight, giving equal attention to detail in all areas of the canvas.”

People’s Choice Award

Bruce Daniel: Granite Speaks Very Slowly

101cm x 76 cm, Oil on canvas

Statement by Bruce Daniel

“I once heard it said that rocks speak, but very slowly: it takes a million years for them to say a word. I am drawn to this scene on the one hand by the intense energy of the angular shattered outcrop – as though it had just burst out of the ground – and on the other by the sublime repose of the river bed where changes are measured in millennia.”