The 2017 Mosman Art Prize
Mosman Council celebrates the 70th anniversary year of the Mosman Art Prize with an increase of the major acquisitive prize from $30,000 to $50,000
ENTRIES ARE NOW INVITED TO THE 2017 MOSMAN ART PRIZE celebrating its 70th year this year
Artist Registrations are now open for the Mosman Art Prize which celebrates its 70th year in 2017. The annual exhibition will be on display from Saturday 23 September at Mosman Art Gallery, NSW.
The Mosman Art Prize is the longest running and most prestigious municipal art prize in Australia. Winning entries form the basis of the Mosman Art Collection, a valuable and historic collection that surveys Australian painting since 1947.
This year the major prize sponsored by Mosman Council has increased from $30,000 to $50,000, in a strong vote of confidence in the importance and esteem with which the Prize is held by Council.
The Mosman Art Prize is an acquisitive award of $50,000 sponsored by Mosman Council. Previous winners form a roll call of Australian Art luminaries: Grace Cossington Smith, Weaver Hawkins, Francis Lymburner, Nancy Borlase, Lloyd Rees, Guy Warren, John Caldwell, Frank Hinder, Elwyn Lynn, Margo Lewers, Peter Laverty, Earle Backen, Ken Reinhard, Jenny Sages, Noel McKenna, Dong Wang Fan, Elisabeth Cummings, Tim Johnson, Guan Wei, Adam Cullen, Tom Carment, Nicholas Harding, Jasper Knight, Lucy Culliton and Craig Waddell. Margaret Olley was the inaugural winner in 1947. The notable Australian artist Michael Zavfros Jones was awarded the Mosman Art Prize in 2016.
The 2017 Mosman Art Prize will be judged by Kirsten Paisley, Deputy Director, National Gallery of Australia. Past adjudicators include notable Australian art figures such as Margaret Preston, John Olsen, Tim Storrier, Jenny Sages, Edmund Capon, Margaret Olley and John McDonald.
Each year over 900 entries are received in one very long day at the Mosman Art Gallery. The artworks are then selected for a finalist exhibition that extends across the entire top two levels of the Gallery for six weeks.
The Mosman Art Prize offers four further art awards in addition to the acquisitive major prize.
Other Awards:
Mosman Council also sponsors the Allan Gamble Memorial Art Prize. An accomplished architect and artist and Mosman Councillor for 24 years, Allan Gamble was the founder of the Mosman Art Prize. Valued at $3,000 (non -acquisitive), this prize will be awarded to the best painting which explores the theme of ‘the built environment’. The Council also sponsors the $2,000 Commendation Prize; other sponsors include the Fourth Village Providore Young Emerging Artists’ Award (under 35 years) $2,000 and the Mosman Art Society Viewers’ Choice Award for $1,000.
Important Dates: 2017 MOSMAN ART PRIZE
Monday 11 September Receiving Day for artworks (from 8.00am)
Monday 18 September Finalists (selected for exhibition) announced
Saturday 23 September Exhibition opens for viewing (daily, 10.00am – 5.00pm)
Thursday 28 September Prize Announcements and official opening (6.30pm – 8.00pm)
In Australia, art prizes come and go. They may offer large sums of money and have glamorous marketing campaigns, but they still have limited life spans. The chief exceptions to the rule are the Archibald Prize and the Mosman Art Prize
John McDonald, Mosman Art Prize adjudicator, 1989 & 2004
The Mosman Art Prize is a barometer of contemporary painting which showcases some of Australia’s best artists. When people see this show they will see a diversity of practice and the potential of painting as a contemporary medium and how immediate painting is to ideas.
Kon Gouriotis, Mosman Art Prize adjudicator, 2010
2017 MOSMAN ART PRIZE
Where: Mosman Art Gallery, 1 Art Gallery Way, Mosman, NSW 2088
On view: 23 September to 29 October 2017
Open: 7 days, 10am – 5pm Admission: Free PH: 02 9978 4178
Information: www.mosmanartgallery.org.au