Congratulations to Justine Varga who has won the 2019 Dobell Drawing Prize. The Sydney-born artist took out the $30,000 award with Photogenic drawing, 2018, a piece that blurs the boundaries between drawing and photography.
Now in its 21st iteration, the 2019 prize was judged by artist Ben Quilty.
In discussing Varga’s winning work Quilty said, “The winner of the Dobell Drawing Prize #21 uses drawing in the most meaningful and sophisticated way. Her work is a distillation of so many components of our collective lives. Drawing plays a pivotal role in this artist’s exploration of us all.”
Quilty also highly commended Tony Albert was for his drawing, Old Sins Cast Long Shadows, 2018. He said, “Highly commended goes to an artist who is relentlessly and skilfully re-writing dialogues about Australian histories. Drawing underpins his practice. Old Sins Cast Long Shadows uses the most simple drawing techniques to tell a formidably sophisticated story.”
The Dobell Drawing Prize #21 exhibition includes works by all 57 finalists and is on at the National Art School (NAS) Gallery until 25 May.
In conjunction with the prize, NAS is also hosting a broader drawing festival which includes a range of additional drawing exhibitions and a symposium.
The Dobell Drawing Prize and the Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial at the Art Gallery of New South Wales run in alternate years.
Dobell Drawing Prize #21
National Art School Gallery
28 March – 25 May
65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art is an extraordinary account of the unique art of this continent, published alongside a landmark exhibition at the Potter Museum of Art. Necessary and urgent, it tells the story of Indigenous Australian art; a new art history unlike anything we’ve seen. For Jane O’Sullivan, it’s a remarkable and must-read book.
In a new series of illustrated postcards available as a free gift with purchase only at the Art Guide Bookstore, Oslo Davis takes on classic and contemporary art terms and genres and reimagines what they could be referring to.
With so much to choose from, we’ve rounded up the major summer exhibitions in each capital city, open all summer long. Spanning Yayoi Kusama, Magritte, the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, and many more.
Now showing at Home of the Arts (HOTA), the sophomore Gold Coast Triennial, Here and Now, brings together 42 contemporary artists to represent the depth and dynamism of the city’s artistic community.
Whether beloved pets or superstitious omens, animals have always existed in art. The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia’s latest exhibition is paying tribute to two of the most beloved animal figures: cats and dogs.
The growing cultural interest in art books reflects the enduring power of the printed word. Jane O’Sullivan takes a closer look.
