Barbie Kjar Lion Tides 2023 Mokulito drypoint relief print and stencils 380 x 224 cm
Congratulations to Barbie Kjar and Stephanie Monteith, who have both been selected as finalists in the 2023 Hazelhurst Art on Paper Award.
Now in its twelfth year, the biennial Hazelhurst Art on Paper Award is a significant national exhibition that aims to elevate the status of work on paper while supporting and promoting artists working with this medium. With awards totalling $26,000, the Award showcases outstanding art created with, on or about paper, and presents a diverse range of works including drawing, printmaking, collage, photography, sculpture, paper cuts and video.
This year Hazelhurst received entries from 890 artists from across Australia, from which 82 finalists – including Kjar and Monteith – were selected.
Kjar says of her work: “Lion tides occur when the earth, moon and sun are aligned at perigee and perihelion. It is a tide just after a new or full moon, when there is greatest difference between high or low tides, commonly known as big tides.
As an ocean swimmer I am aware of an underworld, a world under the water, a world which is deep, unknown, at times treacherous but also calm and clear. It is abstracted with hues of green, debris, seaweed, creatures, jellyfish, fish, currents, light, dense, choppy, wild, transformative.
Each time I came back to land I feel altered, in awe, and buffeted from a myriad of thoughts.I have delved into a magic zone. I have lived on the island of Tasmania most of my life, almost always next to the sea and have sea faring heritage in my ancestors. My artistic concerns are the rituals of human behaviour, connection to the natural world, identity, mythology and science, historical research and narratives. I am particularly interested in the impact of climate change, stories of the sea, navigation and the deep dark sea itself. Lion Tides is a reflection of my preoccupation with the sea.”
Stephanie Monteith Floral Arrangement 2022 graphite on paper 105 x 75 cm.
Monteith says of her work: “‘Floral Arrangement’ investigates a visual encounter. I find the activity of rendering a lived experience into a picture fulfilling. It is a process of abstraction that strangely enough results in an illusion of representation.
Drawing has always been essential to my art practice. For several years I have been developing drawings in response to observing shadows. ‘Floral Arrangement’ is the largest and most complex attempt at one of these shadow drawings.
These works relate to the tradition of “trompe-l’œil”. Translated from French to English, “trompe-l’œil” means ‘deceive the eye’. This is the name given to artworks or even architecture, where realistic imagery is used to create the optical illusion that the depicted objects exist in three dimensions. This is a playful visual experience that I enjoy interpreting. Whilst the use of the phrase “trompe-l’œil” has fairly recent origins, the desire to create this type of illusion has ancient connections.”
Hazelhurst Art on Paper Award 2023
Hazelhurst Arts Centre
782 Kingsway, Gymea NSW 2227
16 September – 12 November 2023