fifty squared art prize
2021 winners
Brunswick Street Gallery is proud to announce the winners of the 2021 Fifty Squared Art Prize.
Featuring hundreds of artworks measuring no greater than 50x50cm, the Fifty Squared Art Prize brings together artists of diverse practices from all over Australia and beyond.
Brunswick Street Gallery would like to thank our esteemed guest judge Kimberley Moulton, Senior Curator South Eastern Aboriginal Collections, Museums Victoria for her selection of our First Prize winner.
We would also like to thank Art Guide Australia, Derivan and PG Printmaker Gallery for their support and generous sponsorship of this national art prize.
Finally, an enormous congratulations to all of the artists who are exhibited as part of this year's Fifty Squared Art Prize – whose works transform our gallery each year, showcasing the breadth of talent and multiplicity of art practices, on show for all of the community to enjoy.
First Prize – $4000 cash prize (non-acquisitive)
exhibit
Jarrad martyn
Brunswick Street Gallery is pleased to announce the First Prize winner as Jarrad Martyn for his painting Exhibit.
Of this work, esteemed judge Kimberley Moulton said in a statement:
I was instantly taken by this painting by Jarrad Martyn titled ‘Exhibit’ both for its exquisite painterly qualities and captivating subject matter.
Drawn in by the plumes of white matter into what looks like a gallery space you could be in any museum or art gallery in the world, from the NGV to the Met there is no clue to the geography of place however the universal experience of a museum and also the increasing presence of deep cleaning and people in hazmat suits are unfortunately no longer a foreign occurrence. The use of oil paint and warm colour creates a soft glow that emanates from the work, perhaps its early morning or late in the evening. Although the presumed cleaning of the gallery is taking place COVID-19 is not necessarily the subject matter here, I read themes of issues that are pertinent to our world today, health of people, the deconstruction of colonial institutions and monuments, the feelings of isolation and contemplation in a world that has dramatically changed in a short period of time. The empty frame perhaps alluding to the removal of a work, we are left to wonder why. The monument behind the human figure on the mounted horse both looks to be cast with a shadow from the dull light of the room but potentially could also be seen as splashed with red paint. Is this a deep clean for the disease of racism in these spaces or the smoking white chemical symbolic of the whitewash of history that so often permeates the art and cultural histories of institutions? There is an emptiness or a feeling of aloneness here, the empty chairs, the missing work, the figure alone and looking downwards concentrating hard at the job at task, but pushing onwards – feelings of what we have felt much of in recent times. When reading this work it inspires many questions, conceptually it is dynamic and although we may not understand the narrative from the outset, it is relatable in many ways.
Congratulations Jarrad on your work which holds a great depth of ideas and beautifully realised in your chosen medium.
– Kimberley Moulton
Congratulations to Jarrad Martyn, awarded the First Prize, as selected by Kimberley Moulton, Senior Curator South Eastern Aboriginal Collections, Museums Victoria.
The First Prize winner will receive a $4000 Cash Prize (non-acquisitive).
Image: Exhibit, Jarrad Martyn, Oil on Canvas, 50x40cm.
Brunswick Street Gallery Prize
snail egg
avan robins
Brunswick Street Gallery is pleased to present the Brunswick Street Gallery Prize to Avan Robins for his painting Snail Egg.
Of this piece, Brunswick Street Gallery’s Director Sean Smith, Gallery Manager Jacqui Burnes and Stockroom Coordinator Glenn Manson issued a joint statement:
In a traditional movement such as portraiture, Robins’ ‘Snail Egg’ is a contemporary approach to the format, blending surreal qualities that offer the viewer glimmers of the artist’s secreted self, as well as a stylised realism that is grounding to the piece.
Vibrant and dreamlike, this piece instantly captures your focus and invites the viewer to more critically analyse the image. A self-portrait, the vivid red snail eggs allude to foundational qualities of the artist’s identity, used as the structure for the subject’s presentation. To dissect one’s sense of identity is to reveal its multifaceted and often conflicting components, and Robins plays with this concept with contrasting elements such as water and concrete at opposing odds in the background.
Breathing a new life into a traditional format, Robins’ technical skill is evident in this piece, where the viewer can appreciate each delicately painted component that make the ‘whole’ of the figure.
Upon first glance, not only is the work visually engaging, but it also elicits curiosity from the viewer, leaving us wanting to know more about the subject, in order to better understand them.
It is our great pleasure to award this prize to such an exciting artist and our congratulations to Avan.
Congratulations to Avan Robins, awarded a Brunswick Street Gallery Prize as selected by the Brunswick Street Gallery’s Director, Sean Smith, Gallery Manager, Jacqui Burnes and Stockroom Coordinator Glenn Manson.
The Brunswick Street Gallery Prize winner will be awarded a $1500 contribution towards a solo exhibition at Brunswick Street Gallery in 2022.
Image: Snail egg, Avan Robins, oil on wood panel, 40x50cm.
works on paper Prize
figure construction
aylsa mchugh
Brunswick Street Gallery is pleased to present the Works on Paper Prize to Aylsa McHugh for her photogravure print Figure Construction.
Of this piece, Irene Torres, Director of PG Printmaker Gallery, said in a statement:
Demonstrated in McHugh’s considered approach to image-making is an aesthetic sensibility that boasts a high level of sophistication, as well as an execution that exhibits a clear understanding of one’s medium.
Unpretentious in its simplicity, Figure Construction doesn’t ask too much from the viewer, and instead employs a mindful composite of traditional visual devices, engendering a viewing experience that is immediately gratifying and uncomplicated.
– Irene Torres
Congratulations to Aylsa McHugh, awarded the Works on Paper Prize as selected by Irene Torres, Director, PG Printmaker Gallery.
The Works on Paper Prize winner will be awarded a voucher for services generously supported by PG Printmaker Gallery.
Image: Figure Construction, Alysa McHugh, Photogravure Print, 42x46cm.
honourable mention
where do the seals sleep?
lorna quinn
Brunswick Street Gallery is pleased to present the Honourable Mention to Lorna Quinn for her piece Where do the seals sleep?.
Quinn’s Where do the seals sleep? shows a masterful understanding of the artist’s chosen medium, presenting the landscape in all its rolling majesty. Intricately detailed, the viewer is instantly reminded of familiar Australian coastlines, and the movement within this piece captures the essence of a land that has been shaped and moulded by the harshness of the elements.
Congratulations to Lorna Quinn, awarded the Honourable Mention in this year’s Fifty Squared Art Prize, generously supported by leading arts publication Art Guide Australia.
The winner of the Honourable Mention will receive a half-page advertisement in an issue of Art Guide Australia, valued at over $700.
Image: Where do the seals sleep?, Lorna Quinn, Sumi ink on cotton rag, 38.5x31cm.
people’s choice award
GREECE=AURA
AMANDA PRINCE
As selected by popular vote from visitors to our Fifty Squared Art Prize, the winning artist will receives an artist’s supplies from Derivan.
Image: ‘Greece=Aura', Amanda Prince, hand printed cyanotype, 49x38.5cm.
The 2021 Fifty Squared Art Prize is supported by:
