2018 Award Winners and Finalists

Claire Tozer
WINNER - $20,000 ACQUISITIVE PRIZE
Mangroves
Ink on Paper, 93 x 126cm
When walking through the coastal areas near where I live on the Central Coast, I take photos of the bushland and waterways. At home, I print out the photos I am interested in and set down to draw my own interpretation of what I experience in that scene.'Mangroves' was drawn with permanent pigment ink pens. I find these pens enable me to explore every moment and step through this environment in a graphic and detailed way; not as a direct representation but with a creative and exploratory process.
Andrew Nott
HIGHLY COMMENDED - $2,000 NON-ACQUISITIVE
Untitled Triptych
Pastel, Pencil and Acrylic on Paper, 142 x 126cm
Min-Woo Bang
PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD - $1,000 NON-ACQUISITIVE
Sublime in Nature
Oil on Linen, 150 x 150cm
Ann Arora
COMMENDED
Convergence
Oil on Canvas, 108 x 85cm
‘Convergence’ is one of a series of paintings that explore the relationship between the human figure and the environment. The landscape in this series is mostly the urban landscape of Northern India where I have spent extended periods of time over the years. There is a particularity to this landscape that has allowed me to explore relationships between organic and geometric shapes, echoing traditional, new and ad hoc architectural elements within the environment.
Jonathan Kim
COMMENDED
Jogakbo I
Crayon and Ink on Paper, 53 x 52cm
In my Jogakbo painting series, Korean sentiments were used more actively than others. Jogakbo is a traditional Korean quilt cloth that has been made for hundreds of years, and it was made to recycle discarded materials rather than to be made for a particular purpose. Korean women used their sewing skills to create unique and personal patterns using the geometric shapes and colours of the fabric itself. With the traditional aspects, Jogakbo pattern is accepted as one of the design elements that represent Korean beauty today. However, the pattern is still being used in textile designs or Korean paper crafts despite its artistic potential. I adopted the aesthetic value of Jogakbo in my crayon painting, excluding the functionality. Also, the colours based on Obangsaek emphasise Korean sentiments. Jogakbo I consists of several rectangles with soft colours, as a result, it creates a very stable, gentle feeling.