The first Wanganui National Art Exhibition and Award was launched yesterday at the
Wanganui Community Arts Centre, 19 Taupo Quay, and runs until September 27th.
Twenty works were entered by ten artists from the Wanganui, Hawke’s Bay and Wellington regions. The convener Aaron Potaka, of Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios, is pleased to present New Zealand’s newest art exhibition and award to the city and expects the entries and prize to grow next year.
“This city has a reputation for nurturing and promoting the arts, and with the Wanganui National, now the city has stepped up to take on those responsibilities for contemporary art for all of New Zealand”, Potaka says.
He says that he is honoured to have talented artists exhibiting and being ambassadors for the Wanganui National Art Exhibition and Award.
A panel of graphic novelist Dylan Horrocks, printmaker Rowan Gardiner and the convener, Potaka, selected Glory by Esther Topfer of Wanganui, as Best in Show. The panellists were impressed with all works, commenting that they were at the forefront of contemporary art in New Zealand. The decision to select a winner for the award was difficult to make.
The winning work is a silkscreen of paints and mixed media on glass. The work has
sophistication and appeal to it. The work is grounded with dark blues and blacks, and the gold and pink in the figures are very alluring. The production process was innovative and fresh, and materials integrated into the work were delightfully quirky.
The Wanganui National Art Exhibition and Award is presented by Optiv101 Fine Arts and
Multimedia Studios.
Copyright © 2009 Optiv101 Fine Arts and Multimedia Studios
