05/05/2008

 Record entries by emerging artists in the churchie 2008 

the churchie national emerging art exhibition attracted a record 780 entries this year, from nearly 400 artists from across Australia. 

The previous record was 690 entries in 2006. 

Entrants are vying for the main prize of $10,000 which goes to the overall winner, in addition to the category prizes. 

The pre-selection judge, Simon Wright, has the mammoth task of choosing 100 works across the competition’s four categories, to go before the co-judges on May 29. 

The overall winner and four category winners will be announced at the opening night of the exhibition of finalists on May 30 in Brisbane. The exhibition, at Churchie’s Morris Hall (Anglican Church Grammar School) in Oaklands Parade, East Brisbane, continues until June 1. 

Simon is highly qualified for this role, as Director of the Griffith Artworks & DELL Gallery at the Queensland College of Art, an adjunct senior lecturer at the College and a private curator for The Paul Eliadis Collection of Contemporary Australian Art. He was among the panel of art experts who chose Australian Art Collector Magazine’s ’50 Most Collectable Artists 2008’ and he collects the work of young artists for the Griffith University Art Collection. 

Simon will select the finalists from more than 400 paintings, 180 works on paper, 115 sculptures and 69 new technology entries. 

“The churchie has had a massive response this year,” Simon said. 

“The entries are broadly representative of what’s going on all over the country by people of all ages who are young at art, as they deal with urgent issues from an artist’s point of view.”

Francis is Curator, contemporary Australian art and Jose is Associate Curator, film, video and new media.   

the churchie national emerging art exhibition, better known simply as the churchie, was established in 1987 by parents of students at Churchie (Anglican Church Grammar School) in Brisbane. 

Over the last 21 years the churchie has gained a reputation as one of the best emerging art awards in Australia. 

Since winning the main prize last year, Sydney artist, Penelope Cain, 41, has gone from strength to strength, including a residency in Taiwan during which she created three huge banners, three storeys tall, that now hang on the façade of an old Government building in Taipei. They are similar to her winning entry in the churchie – a multi-media combination of photography, drawing and painting, printed onto a nylon fabric. 

“Winning the churchie was a fantastic confidence booster,” said Penelope who didn’t know if her entry, a combination of photography and drawing, would work – “whether it conveyed anything to anyone”.  

“It obviously did. The judge (Peter Hill) said it was an exciting combination of media and concept. Pigeons pecking away on a footpath and office workers going to work – two busy worlds colliding in one place,” said Penelope of her first art prize – a digital print, graphite and acrylic on canvas, Untitled (Martin Place 8:45am.).  

Cassandra Laing, joint winner of the churchie 2006, for her work on paper entitled, A Charmed Life, went on to be selected as a finalist in several other national art prizes: the Waterhouse National History Art Prize, Warrnambool New Social Commentaries ’06, the Jacaranda Acquisitive Drawing Award and Tidal ’06, City of Devonport Art Award and the prestigious Dobell Prize for Drawing. 

Walter Stahl who won the churchie 2005 later won the City of Perth Photomedia Award in 2006. 

In 2004 the churchie was won by Madeleine Kelly for her painting, Coalface, and she was subsequently awarded an Australia Council Residency in Paris. 

In 2006 Paul Mumme was a joint winner with a single channel DVD entitled The Hero. This was the first time an entrant in the New Technologies category had taken out the top award. 

Other past winners include Fireworks Gallery director, Michael Eather, photographer, Matt Ditton, painters Stephen Nothling, Michael Luke and Richard Muldoon, and sculptor, Terry Summers. 

The 2007 winners of the churchie were: 

Overall winner:                     

Penelope Cain         Untitled (Martin Place 8:45am) 

Category winners: 
Painting:                                Oleh Witer                 The Skull 
New Technologies:             Deborah Beaumont Mountain Green 47 
Sculpture/Object based:     Carly Kotynski          Protection 
Works on Paper:                  Owen Leong             Hole 
Judge’s Special Mention:   Elizabeth Lawrence            The Lure of the Lighthouse 

In the churchie national emerging art exhibition 2008, the $10,000 winner’s prize is donated by Brand & Slater Architects.   

More information:   www.churchieemergingart.com 

Media contact:        Nikki Shrimpton                                   
                                    nikki@nscomm.com                                   
                                    Ph 07. 3395 3883 / 0412 645 547