Record entries for art awards

Aspiring Art Awards co-ordinator Yeverley McCarthy displays a donated painting by Dunedin artist John Toomer, which will be auctioned along with dozens of other artworks tonight at the event's annual gala fundraiser in Wanaka. Photo by Lucy Ibbotson.

As package after package of art was delivered to the Holy Family School where the awards are held each year, event co-ordinator Yeverley McCarthy and founding sponsors John Charrington and Pamela McBride were once again impressed by the diversity of the art entered in the awards, now in their fifth year.

"It's such a mixed bag," Mr Charrington said. "We've got an amazing cross-section of stuff from people."

This year's awards attracted 104 entries, the highest number since the Aspiring Art Prize was established. Artists must be living in the South Island to enter and all artwork must be for sale.

Artworks entered must not have been previously exhibited.

"So it's fresh work ... and that's why some of the work turns up still wet ... they've finished it the night before," Mr Charrington said.

All the artworks will be available for sale at tonight's gala night - where the winners will be announced - and during the exhibition period, which runs from 10am to 4pm, Wednesday to Saturday.

All proceeds raised will go to the Holy Family School.

This year's judges are Bing Dawe, an artist and design lecturer at Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology, and Alexandra Kennedy, an artist and lecturer at the Dunedin School of Art.

A total of $11,000 in prize money will be distributed among the winning artists, who are competing for first prize, best young artist, people's choice, best work under $1000 and a new category, best landscape.

"It's pretty hard to escape the landscape if you live in Central Otago," Mr Charrington said.

lucy.ibbotson@odt.co.nz