The Foundry Arts Space has crowned the winners of its “Nature Speaks” Art Prize, announcing the recipients and opening its newest exhibition at an event on Friday, July 17.
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Bendigo-based artist Sharon Field took out the $2500 top prize for her three-part chronicle “Nature speaks in fractured tones.”
Emily Harrison finished runner-up, with Nina O’Brien winning the Hangers’ prize.
Linden Lancaster won the Best Local Artist prize for her work “Going, going, gone,” which she described as “experimental“.
“It’s the first time I’ve entered a piece that hasn’t been an art quilt into a show,” Mrs Lancaster said.
“I haven’t been to anything like that before.
“The gallery was just crammed full of beautiful work and had a really lovely vibe happening ‒ it was really quite exciting.”
Arts Prize committee chair, Dr Sue Harrison, said she was very impressed by the quality and diversity of the 69 pieces entered into the competition.
“The most incredible thing is that, with this exhibition, you get a wide variety of artists, a wide variety of techniques, a wide variety of media, plus the different interpretation of what nature means to people,” she said.
“In particular, some of the more challenging works look at how humanity’s interaction with nature can adversely affect our local area and the planet.”
One such work was Ms Field’s winning entry.
“I’ve been doing another major piece, which is purely on climate change, that I started in 2022 and won’t finish until 2030,” Ms Field said.
“The gallery had put out a fantastic theme and I thought ”Okay, how can I encapsulate what I’m doing in a single artwork?”
She said that questions about her major piece, The Scrolls: 3,000 Days... and counting, showed how disconnected people have become from nature and inspired her to look for ways to share nature’s message.
“People whiz by animals, they whiz by plants, and they don't actually see [them],“ said Ms Field.
“I thought maybe this [artwork could be] a way of just slowing things down and saying ”Look, nature is speaking to us through fractured tones.”
The piece features three canvases, with each exploring the ways nature communicates underground, on the ground, and above the ground, respectively.
It, alongside the other works entered into the competition, will be on display until August 17.
Those interested can visit the Nature Speaks exhibition, vote in the People’s Choice award, and read the artist statements for each piece at The Foundry Arts Space, 13-17 Murray Esplanade, Echuca.