Young artists now in the mix to win Brisbane Portrait Prize

Brisbane Portrait Prize was swamped with entries in 2019. This year, organisers expect an even bigger affair with under 18s now eligible for prizes including The Courier-Mail People’s Choice award.

The Brisbane Portrait Prize was swamped with entries last year and can expect to get even more this year after opening entries up to under 18s.

The prize, which attracted more than 600 entries in its inaugural year was a huge success and entries are already flooding in. The winner this year will be decided by special guest judge Nick Mitzevich, director of the National Gallery of Australia. Prize director Anna Reynolds says young artists need encouragement and can start straight away.

“If you can’t go camping this weekend, why not do a portrait?” Reynolds says. “The Brisbane Portrait Prize is introducing the under 18 category to increase participation and provide support for young and aspiring artists. The entry fee for under 18’s is $25, half the fee for other entries. We are keen to give people the opportunity to keep working, if they can.”

Last year’s big winner was Leonard Brown’s portrait of fellow artist Jordan Azcune

Reynolds says the prize will go ahead for the second year because “now, more than ever, we need artists. We need them to help us understand the world, celebrate our heroes, and to broaden our thinking.”

She says it will be easier to enter the prize this year.
“Taking into consideration the Federal Government's social distancing requirements, all 2020 entries will not be required to have a live sitting to enter the prize. At this stage, we are also still hopeful that it will be safe to hold a Finalists Exhibition. However, if this is not the case, we will look to display the Finalists' artworks digitally.”

There are a number of categories in the prize with the Lord Mayor’s Prize of $50,000 won last year by local artist Leonard Brown with his portrait of friend and fellow artist Jordan Azcune. Winner of The Courier-Mail People’s Choice award of $7,500 last year was Joel Rea with his portrait of John Wayne Parr a 10-time World Champion Muay Thai kick boxer.

The prize attracted portraits in various genres and subjects included a raft of celebrities (including singer Amy Sheppard photographed under water) and plenty of ordinary folks.

Singer Amy Sheppard and artist Beth Mitchell in front of Mitchell’s photo of Sheppard under water which took out the music and performing arts category at last year’s Brisbane Portrait Prize

You didn’t have to be famous to make the cut. In fact one of the biggest celebrity portraits, Tom Macbeth’s excellent portrait of Greg Norman, didn’t make the finalists exhibition which was held at the Brisbane Powerhouse. It will become clearer in the coming weeks who will be painted this year but we know coffee king Dean Merlo is being painted by Anne-Marie Zanetti while human rights advocate Debbie Kilroy is being painted by Paul de Zubicaray.

Coffee king Dean Merlo is being painted for this year’s Brisbane Portrait Prize

Anna Reynolds says the prize has had good responses from artists, who are finding different ways of coping with the restrictions the virus is placing on normal life.

“One artists has photographed her subjects through glass, using the reflections as a visual signal of the distancing requirements,” Reynolds says. “One is isolating on the boat where he lives and he has done a self-portrait. Some artists had live sittings before the crackdown, and have been able to work from photos. Others will be arranging video conferencing, and photos, or turning to friends, family and householders as subjects. Some of the self-portraits are clearly expressing themes of isolation.”

Entries close on August 16, finalists will be announced on September 20 and winners will be announced on October 6.

brisbaneportraitprize.org

Originally published as Young artists now in the mix to win Brisbane Portrait Prize