On a balmy September evening, the Stanthorpe Regional Art Gallery was awash with creativity as we celebrated the much-anticipated 2024 Stanthorpe Art Prize. The Opening Night on Friday, September 6, was a fusion of art and music, marking a highlight in the regional arts calendar. This art prize is a significant local community event that connects us with Australia's national regional arts community and allows locals and visitors to explore world-class art.

A testament to the vibrant and dynamic nature of contemporary art, guests were greeted to an array of striking artworks, each piece telling its own story and reflecting the artist's vision.

We are thrilled to share the recipients of the prestigious awards for the 2024 Stanthorpe Art Prize.

Overall Winner:

The coveted Stanthorpe Art Prize 2024 Award, valued at $16,000, was awarded to Melanie Sinclair for her photograph, The Bogan's Ballet. This outstanding photograph was deemed the most exceptional entry of the competition, capturing the judges' admiration with its remarkable vision and execution.

Judge, Jessica Bridgfoot commented:

“Bogan’s Ballet reflects the Australian landscape in an incongruous marriage of natural beauty and ‘hooliganism’. Using colloquial Australian language, the artist evokes an image of a burnout or a ‘doughy’ reflected as an ancient and classical form of dance. In the vein of Australian photographers such as Rennie Ellis and Max Dupain the artist captures an element of Australian identity showing us beauty, darkness, and humour.”

Judge Michael Brennan added:

“Choosing an overall winner is never easy – but particularly so when presented with such a strong field of entries across such diverse mediums and subjects. We kept coming back to this work. It is at once complex and simple. It speaks to regional communities – although not exclusively. It also talks about the identities of others, yet somehow it achieves this in their absence, which adds a weightiness to the work. It’s an image that is beautiful to look at even if its subject rallies against this. And it’s a work that provides a wealth of formal and conceptual substance which keeps you looking.”

Category Prizes: Each of the six category winners received $4,000 in recognition of their excellence in specific artistic disciplines:

2D - Painting / Drawing:

The 2D - Painting / Drawing category prize went to Thomas Thorby-Lister for his work Untitled (Bladensburg National Park).

Judge, Michael Brennan commented:

“This work gives us a unique take of a tried and tested subject. Technology is embraced, but not overstated, revealing new experiences of something which is very familiar.  It’s a delicate and subtle work, but also somehow bold in its confident limitation of colour and form.”

Thomas was not able to attend, but sent a message:

“Unfortunately I was unable to make tonight, but I am honoured to receive this award! I’d like to thank the judges Jessica Bridgfoot and Michael Brennan for their hard work selecting the category winners and over-all winner, it’s never an easy task and I am truly honoured to have caught their attention. Entering prizes like the Stanthorpe Art Prize is an important part of being an artist. Prizes like tonight are such a huge support and very welcome recognition for any artist, and I would encourage anyone out there to be involved. Feeling seen and appreciated by talented judges with many years of experience and knowing you have stood out amongst so many other incredible works of art, that is an experience that is so uplifting for an artist. My painting examines the Bladensburg National Park from an aerial perspective, detailing the unique ridges and geological features of the site. I would like to acknowledge that this land, and all of so-called Australia is, and always will be, Aboriginal land. I pay my deepest respects to the elders, past, present and Emerging.”

2D - Print Media:

The 2D - Print Media award was presented to Melanie Sinclair for The Bogan's Ballet, which also won the overall Stanthorpe Art Prize Award.

The judges’ additional comments:

“Line is so important in this work, although it kind of sneaks in as subject matter rather than a result of the artist’s hand. There’s a kind of romantic atmosphere to this image, that again, subverts the way we usually think about these artistic devices. It strikes a compelling balance between the poetic and the everyday.”

2D - Mixed / Crafted:

The 2D - Mixed / Crafted award was won by Virginia Keft for “Queering the colony in the Colony: I don't give a Flying Fox which team you bat for.”

The judges commented:

“This work is steeped in the complexities of identity. It simultaneously holds strong to the things that are central to the artist’s sense of self, while finding a form that reaches out to those who might not share those lived experiences. It’s at once boldly affirming and generously disarming.”

Virginia was unable to attend, but sent a message:

“It is such an honour to be named the winner of the Mixed media /Textiles award, thank you to the gallery team and the judges for the recognition. I'm incredibly excited to have my Indigenous weaving work represented at Stanthorpe regional gallery. This work, 'Queering the colony in the Colony: I don’t give a Flying Fox which team you bat for', is a joyous and playful reminder of the multiplicity of identity. It speaks to my personal experience as an Aboriginal, Queer woman with a passionate commitment to truth-telling, cultural knowledge, shared experiences, and a healthy dose of anti-authoritarian cheek! I wish I could be there with you all to celebrate, thank you!”

3D - Modelled / Carved:

The 3D - Modelled / Carved prize was awarded to Sue Wright for Modern Relic.

The judges commented:

“Our presumed place at the centre of the world is shaken with this object, presenting a glimpse of a future where the things we think are strong and resilient are overtaken by a slowly encroaching entity. Or maybe it reflects a future where we live more harmoniously with other organisms in the world.”

3D - Cast:

The Cast accolade went to Lorraine Dean for Veil.

The judges commented:

“There’s a delicacy and luminosity to this work that rewards closer inspection. For a work that purports to be about hiding something, it also feels like it gives presence and form to the space it contains.”

Lorraine was unable to make it on the night, but sent a message:

Thank you so much for this incredible honour. I am deeply grateful to the judges Jessica Bridgefoot and Michael Brennan and the ‘Stanthorpe regional art gallery for this recognition. It means a great deal to have my work acknowledged in such a meaningful way.

As an emerging ceramist, I have been developing a unique process of fusing fabric and porcelain, which allows me to sculpt and cast delicate vessels in a single firing. This journey of research has been as much about my personal discovery as it has been about artistic development. The layers within my work reflect the layers within all of us—our strength, fragility, and vulnerability.

Thank you again for this award and for your support of my work. This recognition truly fuels my passion and dedication.

3D - Composite / Assemblage:

This 3D - Composite / Assemblage category was won by Lori Pensini for Farm Yard.

Judges mentioned:

“Cultures and histories collide in this work, reflecting the maker’s own family story, but also more broadly that of indigeneity, colonisation and complex relationships with our environment. Its materials and the appearances they assume are loaded with these histories and cultures, and provide a subtext for what is pictorially portrayed.”

Patrons Local Artist Award ($1,500):

The Patrons Local Artist Award was presented to Leon Ward for Tiny Worlds.

The judges commented:

“There is a sense of sharing in this work that can only come from someone familiar with a place yet so enthralled by it, they just have to tell others about it too. It draws our attention to what is easily overlooked, but maintains enough of its surrounds to suggest that there are countless other enclaves like this waiting to be discovered.”

The Ted & Daph Reeves Memorial Prize for Young Artists ($1,500):

The Ted & Daph Reeves Memorial Prize for Young Artists, honouring young talent, was awarded to Charlie Jones for The Future, who, at just 13 years old, impressed with his remarkable work.

The judges comments:

“This is a work that’s full of narrative and asks us to engage in the story it’s telling. Each new generation has a particular take on the world and its challenges, and as it will fall to these young people to decide how to deal with the circumstances they’ve inherited, art provides an important platform for bringing these things into public spaces.”

The IAS Fine Art Logistics Changeover Team Award ($2,000):

This award, chosen by the Changeover Team, was given to James Stickland for his outstanding oil portrait, Graced by Family. James is from the Sunshine Coast, and the subject of his portrait is his friend Jessica LeClerc who won the Stanthorpe Art Prize Public Choice Award in 2021.

The artwork statement for this piece:

Jessica LeClerc fought back from a coma. The most important thing? Family, the presence, the touch, the knowing of loved ones by your side. The lace represents this touch of family, if you look closely, you will see the woven word of "family" into it.

Public Choice Award

This year’s Public Choice Award will be determined by visitors to the exhibition and announced at the end of the show.

Special guest of the Opening Night was Philip Bacon AO, a distinguished figure in the Australian art community and a leading art dealer and philanthropist. Philip Bacon Galleries, Brisbane is renowned for its support of emerging Australian artists. He, alongside Michael Brennan, Director at Noosa Regional Gallery, presented the awards. Unfortunately our other judge, Jessica Bridgfoot, Director, Bendigo Art Gallery, was unable to be there on the night.

Michael Brennan is the Director at Noosa Regional Gallery. He has personally curated more than 50 exhibitions and overseen artistic programs that have cumulatively realised more than 500. He has also been the curator of the past three Floating Land Biennales and is currently working towards his fourth. Jessica Bridgfoot, Director, Bendigo Art Gallery, graduated with a Bachelor of Visual Arts from Monash University in 2003 and later completed a Masters in Arts Management at the University of Melbourne. In 2019, Jessica was appointed Director of Bendigo Art Gallery and has enjoyed an extensive career across the public and private sector, including time working overseas.

The evening was further enlivened by the performances of pianists Natasha Kloppers and Marc Conners, whose diverse and beautiful music provided a fitting soundtrack to the night’s celebrations.

We extend our thanks to all those who made this event possible. Our many supporters, volunteers, artists, and sponsors have been instrumental in bringing this year’s Stanthorpe Art Prize to life. Special thanks to our patrons Teena Wilcock OAM and Mike Roselt for sponsoring the Local Artist Award, the Reeves Family for their support of The Ted & Daph Reeves Memorial Prize for Young Artists, and IAS for sponsoring The IAS Fine Art Logistics Changeover Team Award. We also appreciate the support from the Southern Downs Regional Council, Honeysuckle Cottages, C Consulting Engineers, Borderline Regional Arts Association, and Amcal Pharmacy Stanthorpe.

Exhibition Details

The Stanthorpe Art Prize exhibition will be open to the public from Saturday, September 7 to Sunday, November 10, 2024. Visit us during our regular hours: weekends from 10 am to 1 pm and Tuesday to Friday from 10 am to 4 pm. We encourage you to come and view the remarkable artworks, cast your vote for the Public Choice Award, and immerse yourself in the creativity and talent that define this year’s exhibition.