Hubert Pareroultja has been named the overall winner of the 2020 Bluethumb Art Prize, an award which attracted over 2,500 entries from around Australia. This accolade comes shortly after Pareroultja took home the Wynne prize at the Art Gallery of New South Wales for best landscape painting of Australian scenery in September.
The award was judged by a panel, including highly regarded artists Ken Done, Kim Leutwyler, Blak Douglas, Kim Hyunji and Bindi Cole Chocka among others.
Painted within a ‘tricky’ circle format, as the senior Western Arrarnta-Luritja artist describes, ‘Mt Giles, MacDonnell Ranges – Circular Landscape’ celebrates his Father’s country, a couple of hours west from Mparntwe (Alice Springs). Hermannsburg, Mt Sonder and James Range are also favoured scenes in his larger body of work, and were the favourites of senior painters Reuben Pareroultja, Uncles Otto and Edwin Pareroultja and Albert Namatjira who he observed growing up – sparking a practice which evolved from pencil and charcoal to the brilliance in watercolour we appreciate today.
The Runners Up prize was awarded to Dianne Golding for ‘Young Mother with Sick Baby’. Douglas remarked, “I’m infatuated with the Tjanpi Desert Weavers. These creations are so abstractly accurate that they defy abstraction and should be made compulsory as Christmas gifts to all Australian households.”
We congratulate all the prize winners and finalists. Due to the uncertainty of holding events this year, the awards ceremony was held on Instagram Live.
The winner’s exhibition will be held in 2021 at 1 Denison, North Sydney’s new tallest building.