Art Awards and Exhibition winners announced

Mayor Mark Irwin has awarded the City of Stirling’s Major Acquisitive Award – including an impressive $8,000 prize – to Josh Wells for his photographic artwork entitled ‘Six Seasons’.

The City of Stirling’s biennial Art Awards and Exhibition commenced last night with the award ceremony while the exhibition runs until 12 November 2023. The full list of award winners for the 2023 Art Awards and Exhibition are:

• Major Acquisitive Award: Josh Wells for ‘Six Seasons’
  • Photos were taken of local flora found in the remnant bushland of the Inglewood Triangle, captured over a 12-month period to represent each of the Nyoongar Six Seasons
• Second Highly Commended Award: Greg Barr for ‘Charlie’s One’
• Third Highly Commended Award: Karl Lorenz for ‘Blue Wave’
• Rotary Club of Karrinyup Local Artist Award:
  • Nollamara local Robyn Jean for ‘Portrait of Norma MacDonald’
  • Mount Lawley local Marina van Leeuwen for ‘5.48 Clotilde’
• Oxlades Art Supplies Young Artist Award: Han Gunn for ‘Tripping up, down Dream St’.

The esteemed judges – Lyndall Adams, Michelle Broun and Peter Ciemitis – also awarded four commendations:

• Richard Aitken for ‘We Reclaim’
• Tatiana Amaral for ‘120 Ways of Seeing’
• Pok Leung Li for ‘White-cheeked Honeyeater’
• Karen Price for ‘Hey You’.

Mayor Mark Irwin said he was thrilled to see the extensive collection of masterful works on display at the City, which would now be open to the public to view and interact with.

“The City’s Art Awards and Exhibition is our flagship recognition program for the arts, and I want to congratulate all of the 2023 winners on their tremendous works of creativity,” he said.

“Our judges described Major Acquisitive Award winner Josh Wells’ work entitled ‘Six Seasons’ as a sophisticated celebration of the Nyoongar six seasons in a highly sensitive and culturally respectful way.

“It has an accomplished composition and balance and is so beautifully presented and technically impressive that it could easily be exhibited internationally. We congratulate Josh Wells once again and we are thrilled to acquire this work into the City’s extensive collection.

“Josh also happens to have grown up in Inglewood and remains an active member of the Town Team ‘Inglewood on Beaufort’ and their Inglewood Arts Hub. The flora photographically captured for his work are all found locally at the Inglewood Triangle, so this is a truly local work of art.

“I also congratulate all of our other talented award winners, as well as thank the artists shortlisted for the awards for sharing their expressions of creativity with us. I encourage everyone to visit the exhibition over the coming week to see these works and more importantly to cast your votes for the final award of this initiative – the Westfield Innaloo People’s Choice Award.”

The exhibition will be open daily to the public from today until Sunday 12 November from 10.00am to 5.00pm, with a public program which includes a local artist networking event, access tours, a ‘Pizza & Poses’ workshop, along with an ‘In Conversation’ with three generations of creative Yorga.

The City’s Art Awards and Exhibition is generously supported by sponsors Art Display Hire, the Rotary Club of Karrinyup, Westfield Innaloo and Oxlades Art Supplies.

For further information, please visit www.stirling.wa.gov.au/artawards or email art@stirling.wa.gov.au.