Art prize opens
DRAWN by the possibility of becoming $15,000 richer, Grafton Regional Gallery director Jude McBean expects entries for the 2012 Jacaranda Acquisitive Drawing Award (JADA) to surpass 400.
Regional Australia's richest drawing award with a total of $30,000 in prizes and acquisitions, the JADA aims to promote excellence in contemporary Australian drawings. With entries now open for the 2012 competition, Ms McBean is confident of receiving a large number of submissions.
"The JADA is incredibly popular and this year we are hoping to improve on the 423 entries we received in 2010," she said.
"First prize is $15,000, sponsored by Friends of the Gallery through fundraising, and another $15,000 is spent in acquisitions."
Regular artists have become a formidable force in the competition, with numerous entrants returning to compete each year.
Between 40 and 45 entrants in the 2012 JADA award will be chosen by a selection panel to compete for the prestigious title before touring through Queensland and NSW. The artworks will go on display at the gallery during the Grafton Jacaranda Festival on October 26.
Dr Campbell Grey, director of the Qld Art Museum, has been revealed as the 2012 judge.
"I think the JADA award defines our national identity every year and gives it, the gallery, a national profile," Ms McBean said.
"Acquisitions from the award become a part of the gallery's collection of Australian contemporary drawings. I look forward to seeing our collection expand again in 2012."
The JADA award is open to all artists of Australian residency. South Coast artist and 2010 JADA winner Peter Alwast is encouraging others to bring their work to a wider audience by entering the JADA in 2012.
"It is a well-regarded drawing award nationwide and the prizemoney on offer is exceptionally substantial," he said.
"I think drawing is the essential form of mark making and everyday contemporary modern art is a form of inscription.
"The JADA encompasses that every year."
Ms McBean said the competition allowed artists to determine their own interpretation of what constituted drawing.
Entry forms for the 2012 JADA are available from the gallery at 158 Fitzroy St or download from grafton.gallery.nsw.gov.au.
Phone 6642 3177 to have an entry forms mailed directly. Entries close August 3.
