ARTISTS from all corners of the region and the country are expected to submit works to this year’s Inverell Art Prize, after hundreds of works were received last year.
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The competitive exhibition, closing entries on September 9, takes over the Art Gallery on Evans Street, which is currently featuring Granite Belt sculptor Maggie Brockie and Indigenous artist Rod McIntosh.
For the gallery’s Robyn Johnson, the challenge is fitting the entries in.
“They come from all over, from Sydney and the local area, Brisbane, we have had them from Adelaide,” she said, looking forward to this year’s Art Prize.
“We have a local section, which is within 80 kilometres and then a special section which is titled ‘Inverell, then and now’.
They come from all over, from Sydney and the local area, Brisbane, we have had them from Adelaide.
- Robyn Johnson
“It is a big anniversary of the Sapphire City Festival, so we are featuring Inverell.” Brockie, who has exhibited a collection of Australian wildlife alongside McIntosh’s vibrant canvases, won second place in last year’s ceramics section.
“We have so many people, and so much, that we actually have to close the gallery,” Robyn said.
“(A hanging committee) take a week to hang it all because trying to get artworks that look good together, hanging in a good light, is tricky.”
It’s a busy time of year for the art sphere, as artists bring out their best for the top gong and judges from different disciplines offer their critiques.
“We have a different judge each year. Last year, we had James White from Armidale and they come and they comment and tell us why they have chosen,” Robyn said from the mezzanine. “It is great to look down. The colours are wonderful.”