KILGOUR PRIZE 2020 finalists announced

Newcastle Art Gallery has announced the finalists for the KILGOUR PRIZE 2020.

One of Australia’s major art prizes, the KILGOUR PRIZE awards $50,000 for the most outstanding work of art selected by a judging panel consisting of the Newcastle Art Gallery Director and two invited arts industry representatives. A $5,000 People’s Choice is also awarded to the painting voted most popular by the general public.

This year the 30 finalists were selected from more than 350 entries received from artists across the country. The 2020 finalists include artists from the ACT, NSW, Tasmania, Victoria, and Western Australia. The list also features two local artists, Michael Bell and Peter Gardiner, who have both been regular entrants to the KILGOUR PRIZE, with the latter winning the KILGOUR PRIZE in 2016.

“Every year the KILGOUR PRIZE presents some of the best contemporary Australian portrait and figurative painting. Given the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Australian arts sector, the KILGOUR PRIZE has been an incredible opportunity to encourage and support artists to continue producing and creating works of art. This year’s selected artists present diverse interpretations of the brief, resulting in a very dynamic exhibition,” Newcastle Art Gallery Director Lauretta Morton said.

Funded by a bequest from artist Jack Noel Kilgour, the KILGOUR PRIZE has encouraged innovation within portrait and figurative painting since 2006.

The winner will be announced on Friday 31 July 2020 and the KILGOUR PRIZE 2020 will be on display 1 August - 15 November 2020.

2020 Judges:

Lauretta Morton, Director Newcastle Art Gallery

Stephen Gilchrist, curator and Lecturer Art History, The University of Sydney

Rachel Arndt, Gallery Programs and Touring Exhibitions Manager, Museums and Galleries of NSW.

2020 Finalists:

An Sheng, Andrew Bennett, Anh Nguyen, Ben Ryan, Brittany Jones, Bronni Krieger, Corinna Howell, Craig Handley, Dagmar Cyrulla, Daniel Butterworth, Elizabeth Austin, Erik Krebs-Schade, Esther Erlich, Greg Creek, Jacqueline Hennessy, Jordan Richardson, Joshua McPherson, Kenneth Lambert, Kerry McInnis, Kylie Melinda Smith, Lileana Colarelli, Lori Pensini, Lynn Savery, Melissa Ritchie, Michael Bell, Oliver Shepherd, Peter Gardiner, Tony Costa, Tracy Dods, Wendy Sharpe.

For more information - www.nag.org.au/Exhibitions/Future/KILGOUR-PRIZE-2020

ABOUT THE KILGOUR PRIZE

Jack Noel Kilgour (1900–1987) was an Australian artist well-known for his academic approach to landscape and portrait painting. In 1987 Kilgour bequeathed funds for the creation of a major figurative and portrait art competition to be run in perpetuity. As one of Australia’s major art prizes, Newcastle Art Gallery is proud to be the home of the KILGOUR PRIZE.

More information: https://www.nag.org.au/Kilgour-Prize