Contemporary Australian Drawing: 20 Years of the Dobell Prize for Drawing

Image: Nicholas Harding
Eddy Avenue (3)
2001 black ink on two sheets of torn and abraided paper 132.4 x 149 cm © the Artist Photo: Mim Stirling, Art Gallery of New South Wales

 

According to his wishes, the estate of Sir William Dobell (1899-1970) has provided funding for an annual drawing competition and prize.  In 2012 the 20th anniversary of the Dobell Prize for Drawing was marked by this touring exhibition which surveys previous participants and prize winners.  Dobell’s own achievements as a graphic artist and his ambition to promote the art of drawing are highlighted in an introductory section.  The exhibition celebrates the sheer diversity of contemporary drawing practices, with excellence and vitality displayed across the board.

Contemporary Australian Drawing: 20 Years of the Dobell Prize for Drawing is an Art Gallery of New South Wales exhibition curated by Anne Ryan and toured by Museums & Galleries NSW.

Preview the exhibition

Kevin Connor Pyrmont and city 1992
brush and black ink, white gouache 104 x 132.cm Collection Art Gallery of New South Wales

Pyrmont and city is the culmination of numerous smaller plein-air drawings in ink and gouache of Pyrmont, an inner-city suburb of Sydney, before its development from a semi- industrial to residential area comprising modern apartment blocks, a casino and recreation areas.  The area has provided Connor with fertile subject matter and this drawing represented a new development in the artist’s oeuvre, in his use of white gouache with ink, which accounts for its painterly nature.

http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/touring/contemporary-australian-drawing/

CONTEMPORARY AUSTRALIAN DRAWING

11 April – 18 May 2014

 

According to his wishes to promote all aspects of art in Australia, the estate of Sir William Dobell (1899-1970) has provided funding for an annual drawing competition and prize.  In 2012 the 20th anniversary of the Dobell Prize for Drawing was marked by this touring exhibition which surveys previous participants and prize winners.

Contemporary Australian Drawing: 20 Years of the Dobell Prize for Drawing features prize-winning drawings and outstanding works acquired throughout the history of the prize while it has been held at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.  The exhibition includes artworks by artists as diverse in  approach  as Colin Lanceley, Judy Cassab, Wendy Sharpe, Allan Mitelman, Aida Tomescu, inaugural winner Kevin Connor and the latest winner of the 2012 Dobell Prize, Gareth Sansom’s Made in Wadeye.

Contemporary Australian Drawing: 20 Years of the Dobell Prize for Drawing celebrates the unique contribution the Dobell Prize has made to the development of contemporary drawing in Australia. Dobell’s outstanding  role in encouraging the art of drawing is highlighted in an introductory section of the exhibition.

Curated by Anne Ryan and Hendrik Kolenberg the exhibition celebrates the sheer diversity of contemporary drawing practices, with excellence and vitality displayed across the board.

Contemporary Australian Drawing: 20 Years of the Dobell Prize for Drawing is an Art Gallery of New South Wales exhibition toured by Museums & Galleries NSW.  See the AGNSW website for more information.