Talking with Painters Maria Stoljar

In this episode I’m taking you back to my interview with Megan Seres who won the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize in 2016. 

Megan received the $150,000 in prize money for her stunning painting, ‘Scarlett as Colonial girl’, which depicted her daughter in 19th century dress against a golden landscape.



Megan hadn't planned on entering the competition, but was persuaded by a friend. When she heard her name announced as the winner, she was completely shocked.



To hear the episode press play beneath the above photo.



Central photo of Megan Seres supplied by the artist 

Links



* Megan Seres full Talking with Painters interview (ep 41)

* 'The Archibald Winners' (ep 115)

* Talking with Painters YouTube channel

* My YouTube video of Megan in her studio (2018)

* My 15 second video of the painting hanging in the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize exhibition in 2016

* Megan Seres' website







‘Scarlett as colonial girl’, 2016, winner of the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize 2016

Australia's most famous art prize was awarded yesterday at the Art Gallery of NSW together with the Wynne and Sulman prizes.

The $100,000 prize went to a shocked but happy 29 year old Julia Gutman for her fabulous portrait of singer/songwriter Montaigne. It’s titled ‘Head in the sky feet on the ground’, a beautiful mixed media work consisting of oils, found textiles and embroidery. I had a chance to talk with her shortly after the announcement and I’m bringing you today that conversation together with her acceptance speech.



The Wynne prize for landscape painting or figure sculpture went to Zaachariaha Fielding for his painting 'Inma’. Zaachariaha is primarily a singer, the lead vocalist of the band Electric Fields, and sings in Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara and English. Together with producer Michael Ross they have received 22 awards over the past 6 years for his music. In the winning work Zaachariaha aimed to visually depict sound, specifically the sounds of Mimili, a small community in the eastern part of the APY lands in South Australia and thrilled everyone at the announcement by singing with a few friends saying 'this is what the canvas sounds like' (see below for a link to a short video). 



The Sulman Prize for genre painting which was judged by the artist Nell and went to Doris Bush Nangarrayi for her work 'Mamunya ngalyananyi (Monster coming)' which depicts several Mamus the ominous and malevolent spirits that terrify Anangu. These figures are typically seen to have large haunting eyes with straight hair standing upright and can shapeshift into many different forms, including the human figure. Doris lives in Papunya in the Northern Territory and paints vivid memories stories and dreams from her life.



See below for images of all winning works.

Links



* Julia Gutman's website

* Video of Zaachariaha Fielding



https://youtu.be/GIF0LOntO2o



https://youtu.be/eaTKIf6fBT4



 



Winner Archibald Prize 2023, Julia Gutman 'Head in the sky, feet on the ground', oil, found textiles and embroidery on canvas, 198 x 213.6 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter



Winner Wynne Prize 2023, Zaachariaha Fielding 'Inma', acrylic on linen, 306.2 x 198.5 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter



Winner Sulman Prize 2023, Doris Bush Nungarrayi 'Mamunya ngalyananyi (Monster coming)', acrylic on linen, 198 x 273.5 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter

In part 2 of the series 'When I won that art prize' we go back to episode 29 when James Drinkwater recalled winning the Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship in 2014.  

The award included a three month residency in Paris at the Cité Internationale des arts, a dream come true for any young painter. However, when he and his young family set off for France, not everything went according to plan.

Upcoming show



* Solo show at Edwina Corlette, 'You could just make a painting and write it all in there - new paintings from the slip room', 3 - 23 May, 2023



Links



* Episode 29, James Drinkwater on Talking with Painters

* Episode 115, The Archibald Winners

* YouTube video of interview with Packing Room prize winner Andrea Huelin

* James Drinkwater on Instagram

* James Drinkwater at Nanda\Hobbs

* James Drinkwater at Edwina Collette

* James Drinkwater at Nicholas Thompson Gallery

* Lottie Consalvo 



Photo of James Drinkwater by Maria Stoljar (2017)





‘Encrusting the marvellous heart’, diptych, 2015, oil and collage on hardboard, 180 x 244cm

Finalist Wynne Prize 2015



 



 

Golden moments from the archives! While I'm busy updating my YouTube channel and taking a break from new interviews, I'm thrilled to bring you a new series featuring clips from past podcast guests.

In my first series 'When I won that art prize' I look back at conversations I've had with painters about their experiences with winning awards. Although there are plenty of upsides (the prize money being one of the main ones) it's not always a positive experience!



In 2017 (ep 35), I chatted with the fabulous Prudence Flint. No stranger to art prizes, she has won the Portia Geach Memorial Award, the Len Fox Painting Award and has been shortlisted in the Archibald seven times. But when I asked her what it was like winning the Doug Moran National Portrait prize in 2004, with prize money of $100,000, her response was not what you might expect.

Links



* Full TWP Prudence Flint interview - episode 35

* Prudence Flint website

* Prudence Flint on Instagram

* Prudence Flint's studio on TWP YouTube channel

* Talking with Painters YouTube channel

* The Good Oil Podcast with Graeme Douglas

* Subscribe to the Talking with Painters newsletter







‘A Fine Romance #9’, 2004, oil on linen, 117 x 82cm



Winner of Doug Moran National Portrait Prize 2004







‘Baby’, 2015,  oil on linen, 105 x 90.5cm



Finalist in Archibald Portrait Prize 2015

Last Thursday I was thrilled to speak with Idris Murphy, leading contemporary artist and a previous podcast guest, in front of a live audience at the S.H.Ervin Gallery in Sydney.

It's where the survey exhibition of his work, 'Idris Murphy: Backblocks' is now showing and continues until 26 March 2023. Curated by Terence Maloon, it features breathtaking work predominantly from the last two decades. Paintings which shimmer, glow, and transport the viewer. 



Idris talked with me about his career including the stories behind several works, the influence indigenous culture has had on his approach and how he works in the studio.



Although this exhibition is impressive in its quality and depth, this isn't the first survey show of Idris’s work. The exhibition ‘I and Thou’ in 2009/2010 had highlighted the preceding 30 years of work.



He has exhibited in over 40 solo shows over the years with work in major public collections including  the National Gallery of Australia and Art Gallery of NSW.



Thanks to everyone who came along! 



I also filmed our conversation and will be uploading an edited version of this chat to the TWP YouTube channel in the coming months.



Idris is represented by King Street Gallery in Sydney.



Photo of Idris Murphy in his studio (2022) by Maria Stoljar 

Current exhibition

'Idris Murphy: Backblocks', S.H.Ervin Gallery, Sydney, until 26 March 2023

Links



* Idris Murphy's website

* Idris Murphy at King Street Gallery

* Previous podcast interview with Idris Murphy: Episode 131

* Henri Matisse

* Clip of the American writer I refer to in the episode at about 6:40 - Etel Adnan - on beauty 

* Susan Sontag - 'On Photography'

* Jeanette Winterson

* Annie Dillard

* Rose Wylie

* John Berger  The quote we refer to is from his book 'and our faces, my heart, as brief as photos'

* Bono - 'Surrender'

* Nick Cave

* Badger Bates

* Tickets to Artist Talk with Nick Stathopoulos at AGNSW

* Subscribe to the TWP monthly newsletter 







Installation photo - S.H.Ervin Gallery (see below for individual works)







'Somewhere in France 1', 2017, acrylic and collage on aluminium, 151 x 141cm



ANU Art Collection







'Somewhere in France 2', 2017, acrylic and collage on aluminium, 151 x 141cm



ANU Art Collection







'Somewhere in France 3', 2017, acrylic and collage on aluminium, 151 x 141cm



ANU Art Collection







'Half Moon at the New', 2015, acrylic on aluminium,

For those of you interested in portraiture in Australia, Yvette Coppersmith needs no introduction.  

She has painted dozens of portraits, including a collection of fascinating self-portraits, and is regularly shortlisted in the country's most competitive portrait awards. In 2018 she was awarded the one that would place her in Australian art history - the Archibald Prize.



What has captured my attention more recently, though, are Yvette’s abstract works, particularly a body of work I saw in her exhibition ‘Presage’ at Sullivan + Strumpf in Sydney last year. They were thickly textured, swirling abstractions and how she came to create that show is as interesting as the paintings themselves.



Yvette has been painting for over 20 years and her work is held in many public and private collections. In addition to winning the Archibald Prize, she has won the Metro 5 Art Award and has been a finalist multiple times in nearly every prestigious portrait prize in Australia, including the Doug Moran, Portia Geach, and Darling Portrait prizes.



In this episode we follow her career from her early photorealistic works to her present-day experimentation with paint and genre, encompassing still lifes and interiors along the way.



To hear the conversation click 'play' below the above photo. See below for images of the works we talk about in the show.



Photograph of Yvette Coppersmith by Mel Savage

Links



* Yvette Coppersmith's website

* Yvette Coppersmith on Instagram

* Yvette Coppersmith at Sullivan + Strumpf

* 'Presage' exhibition at Sullivan + Strumpf

* Roger Kemp 2019/20 retrospective at the National Gallery of Victoria

* Talking with Painters YouTube channel

* Sign up to the Talking with Painters newsletter







'Self-portrait after George Lambert', oil and acrylic on linen, 122 x 101.5cm, 2018



Winner Archibald Prize 2018







'Nude Self-portrait after Rah Fizelle', oil on linen, 91.5 x 66cm, 2016



Finalist, Portia Geach Memorial Award, 2016







'John Safran', oil on plywood, 120cm x 90cm, 2009



Archibald Prize finalist 2009







'John Safran', oil on plywood, 120cm x 90cm, 2009



Archibald Prize finalist 2009







'In the Garland, portrait of Paul Capsis', oil on linen, 22.5 x 111.5cm, 2007



Finalist, Archibald Prize, 2008







'Untitled Movement (Scarlet Lake)', oil on jute, 76.5 x 61cm, 2022



Photo: Matthew Stanton



 







'Untitled Movement (Triptych)', oil on jute, 3 x 122.5cm x 91.5cm



Photo: Simon Hewson







'Arrangement with Grey and Yellow', oil on linen 61cm x 46cm , 2014







'Geranium and Succulents', oil on linen, 80cm x 59.5cm, 2015







Posthumous Portrait of Edith Morris, oil on linen, 86.5cm x 63.5cm, 2020



Photo: Matthew Stanton



Collection of Melbourne Girls Grammar School